Sonic Tales
by Ryu
Summary: COMPLETED!! Amy wants Sonic to notice her, Rouge wants the emerald, and basically everyone wants something. Based on everyone.(look inside for better summary).
1. ch1

Authors note: Just to let you know, this story will not just be about one Sonic characters events, but about all of them, so it obviously going to have multiple chapters. I just want you to know that. Also, review or email me at least once a chapter, so I'll know if anybody is reading this. Well, I'll say more things when I think of them. In addition, I'm going to do the best I can on this fic, so suggestions, comments, and praises are welcome. Please don't flame me. I'm writing this fic to the best of my ability so it can have a good plot, storyline, and still have all of the categories I mentioned in the summary. I'll shut up now and let you read it.  
  
Disclaimer: Sonic and Co. are the property of Sega and Sonic Team. They are the ones making the money off of this, not me, although this story is free as well.  
  
  
  
Sonic Tales Chapter 1 Twinkle Park  
  
  
  
It has been a year since the Biolizard event. Eggman hasn't done any type of attacking, which is strange, but the weather is too nice for Sonic and Tails to be worrying about it. The weather's been so nice, that they are taking a leisurely walk in Station Square, which has been rebuilt, due to the tremendous amount of teamwork the fair citizens have did. After all, a city CAN be rebuilt in a year.  
  
"Today is a great day for a leisurely walk, and coming from me, that's saying a lot." Said Sonic as he examined the newly constructed buildings.  
  
"I can't believe it's only taken a year for Station Square to be rebuilt." Said Tails, also looking around at the buildings. "I have an idea! Let's go to the beach for some ice cream and chili dogs!"  
  
"You read my mind Tails, and with a peaceful day like this, nothing can ruin it. Not even Eggman."  
  
Just then, Amy came from around the corner, and gave Sonic a tight hug.  
  
"Hiya Sonic!" she said in her normal happy tone. "I haven't seen you in a while. I was looking all over for you."  
  
"(Me and my big mouth)!" Thought Sonic as he tried to free himself of Amy's grasp. "How did you sneak up on me like that without me noticing?"  
  
"I went to visit Shadow first." She answered. "He said that if I leave him alone, he'll tell me how to find you easier."  
  
"That ungrateful hedgehog!" exclaimed Sonic. "And after I pulled him out of that rubble, brought him to the hospital, and even paid for his medical bills, he betrays me like this!"  
  
"Oh, you're so sweet Sonic, taking care of Shadow like that!" said Amy cheerfully as she hugged him even tighter.  
  
Tails noticed that Sonic was turning into another shade of blue. "Um, Amy," he started, "I think you should release Sonic. He's changing into another shade of blue, which isn't a good thing."  
  
Amy noticed this, and quickly released him. "I'm so sorry Sonic!" she exclaimed, propping him back to his feet. "I just lose control whenever I see you!"  
  
"It's.alright.Amy." Sonic said as he was catching his breath. "What are you doing here anyways?"  
  
"I was looking for you." She answered, smiling. "Wherever you go, I'll help you."  
  
"Is this going to ruin our time at the beach?" asked Tails  
  
"Tails!" exclaimed Sonic.  
  
"Wow! The beach is a wonderful idea!" beamed Amy. "Just let me get my things out of the car."  
  
"You have a car now?" asked Sonic.  
  
Amy nodded. "I finally decided to buy one. In fact, how would you two like a ride?"  
  
"Um, no thanks." Said Sonic, and then came up with a plan. "Hey, Amy. How about you go get your things, while we wait for you."  
  
Amy's eyes lit up. "Wow! I'm so excited! I'll be right back!" Then she ran to the car to go get her things.  
  
"Alright Tails," said Sonic as he grabbed Tails' hand, "I'm going to get us to the beach at a faster than normal speed."  
  
"Okay." Said Tails. "But Sonic?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"I can't help but feel a little guilty about leaving Amy like that."  
  
"Would you rather eat her cooking? You know that she couldn't cook to save her life, and I believe I saw a picnic lunch in her car."  
  
"On second thought, what are we waiting for?! Let's go!"  
  
And with that, they took off to the beach at lightning speed. When Amy finally got her things out, she looked around, and saw that they were nowhere to be seen.  
  
"Oh no." she said to herself, her tone a little sad. "He left me behind. I guess he didn't want me interfering with his time with Tails. I guess I can understand that. Oh well, I'll just go to the new café that was built."  
  
So she got her things together, put them back in the car, entered the car, buckled her seat belt, and drove to the café.  
  
  
  
(Café)  
  
  
  
Rouge was already at the café, drinking a latte, thinking about her future.  
  
"(I wish that getting a good job wouldn't be so difficult)!" she thought. "(If I don't pay the rent by the end of this month, I'll get evicted. I guess slapping that perverted partner of mine wasn't such a good idea, especially when I didn't have another temporary job lined up. Perhaps I should do one more score to tide me over until I find a job. Hmm, let's see.it would take too much time to go on a treasure hunt, and I don't want to rob any banks.Hey! I know! I could steal the master emerald from Knuckles, sell it, and use the money to pay my bills. He shouldn't mind too much. After all, I'm doing it for a righteous cause. Besides, I can always steal it back for him. The only problem is that he won't let me get 3 feet towards him, much less the emerald. You'd think that after I helped with the Biolizard event, he'd at least trust me a little."  
  
She thought for a bit.  
  
"(What I need is someone he could trust enough to leave its sight for just a moment. All I need is a few good minutes, and then I can steal the emerald. But who can I get that's gullible enough to help me)?"  
  
Rouge continued to ponder the situation. During this time, Amy stepped into the café. She ordered a French vanilla latte, and then took a seat, reading a daily horoscope from the newspaper. Rouge's peripheral vision caught eye of Amy.  
  
"(Her timing couldn't be better)." Thought Rouge as she stood up, walked over to Amy's table, and sat down across from her. "Hi Amy. What brings you here?"  
  
Amy sighed. "Just sitting here by myself, reading the paper."  
  
"This has to do with Sonic, doesn't it?" asked Rouge.  
  
Amy nodded. "He left with Tails to the beach. He said he would wait for me, and even told me to get my things, but when I came back, he had already left."  
  
"What a jerk! What do you see in him anyways?"  
  
"No, no. Sonic is really quite nice. I think I just get in his way a lot. He once said that I try too hard when I do things. I know he's right, but I can't help the way I act whenever I'm near him. It's like, whenever I'm with him, all of my problems go away."  
  
Rouge had an expression of disgust on her face. "You know what Amy?"  
  
"What, Rouge?"  
  
"That was really pathetic. You don't get the guy of your dreams by clinging on to him. You have to be around him, yet pretend you could care less for him."  
  
"I don't think I'd be able to do something like that on my own."  
  
"Then I'll help you."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Of course. After all, what are friends for?"  
  
Just then, Omochao flew on the middle of the table.  
  
"Hi. I'm Omochao. I'm here to help you."  
  
"Go away!" exclaimed Rouge.  
  
Of course, it didn't listen, and continued to talk. "Did you know that Sonic has a large ego?"  
  
"Tell us something we don't know." Rouge said agreeably.  
  
"Okay." Said Omochao. "To make Sonic notice you, do something out of the ordinary."  
  
"Like what?" asked Amy.  
  
"Did you know that Rouge knows everything there is to know about catching guys? Ask her for help, and I'll support you."  
  
"If I help you," said Rouge, "you have to help me."  
  
"In what way?" asked Amy.  
  
"Oh, nothing big." Continued Rouge. "All I want you to do get Knuckles to say something positive about me. Nothing sarcastic either. Oh, and make sure he's facing you when he's answering."  
  
Amy agreed. "Sure, but why would you want him to say something nice about you?"  
  
Omochao interrupted. "So she can st-" was all it could say before Rouge picked it up, and threw it far, far away into the streets.  
  
"Never mind that machine." Said Rouge, pretending to be calm. "So, will you do it, or are you going to let Sonic slip from your fingers?"  
  
"I'll do it! I'll do it!" exclaimed Amy. "I'll do anything for my Sonikku!"  
  
"Good." Said Rouge. "I'll meet you at Twinkle Park tonight, by the Ferris wheel. Be there, or be square."  
  
Then Rouge stood up, walked outside the café, and drove away in her car (the one from SA2).  
  
Amy was ecstatic about Rouge helping her. "I can't wait until tonight! Oh Sonic, you'll finally notice me!" Then she noticed everybody staring at her, giving that weird expression. "Oops! Sorry to interrupt you guys. I'll be going now." Then she got into her car, and drove off.  
  
  
  
(The Beach)  
  
  
  
Sonic was leisurely sunbathing on the beach, watching the people go by. Tails was surfing the waves, constantly telling Sonic to see what tricks he can do.  
  
"Hey Sonic!" shouted Tails from the sea. "Look at this new trick I learned!"  
  
Sonic sat up and watched Tails perform many tricks. His vision immediately became blocked by a huge purple figure.  
  
"Get out of the way, Big!" exclaimed Sonic. "You're blocking my view! I can't see Tails, or anything else for that matter!"  
  
But of course, being the dense cat that he is, wasn't registering what Sonic was saying, and continued to look around for his Froggy. Just then, Omochao appeared next to Sonic.  
  
"Hi. I'm Omochao. I'm here to help you."  
  
"Can you help get Big out of the way?" asked Sonic.  
  
Omochao answered. "To get Big out of your way, push him out of the way."  
  
"Are you crazy?! He might fall on me!"  
  
"To make Big go away, tell him Froggy is another direction."  
  
Sonic just shrugged his shoulders. "I guess it's worth a shot. *Clears throat * Hey Big! Froggy ran into the water!"  
  
Bigs eyes lit up. "Duhh.You seen Froggy? He in ocean? Thanks Blue furry!"  
  
And without warning, Big ran towards the ocean, tripped on a sand crab, and fell in the water, causing Tails to lose his balance. Tails fell into the water, but flew back out, and went to Sonic. When he reached him, he saw Sonic holding three tickets.  
  
"Hi Sonic." Said Tails. "Big sorta made me lose focus. So, what'cha got there?"  
  
"They're tickets to Twinkle Park." Answered Sonic. "Big must've dropped them. Oh well. His loss is our gain. Wanna come?"  
  
"You bet! I love carnival rides! But there are three of them. Who else should we take?"  
  
"The question is, why did Big have three tickets? Hm.Well, I guess we could take Amy. After all, we did kinda ditch her back there."  
  
Omochao interrupted. "To get to Amy's house faster, just fly there using the Tornado."  
  
"I didn't bring the Tornado." Said Tails.  
  
, Omochao continued to talk. "Did you know that Rouge is right behind you?"  
  
"Stop playing games with us!" exclaimed Sonic. "We all know that Rouge isn't behind us!"  
  
"Actually, I am." Answered Rouge.  
  
This made Sonic and Tails nearly jump out of their shoes.  
  
"What brings you here?" asked Sonic. "Hopefully, you're not here to steal any chaos emeralds."  
  
"Don't worry." Answered Rouge, giving that hand gesture used to tell somebody to perish the thought. "I've given up jewel hunting, remember?"  
  
"Then what is this about?" asked Sonic, a little suspicious of her unexpected visit.  
  
Rouge simply pointed to Sonic. "This is about you. I've noticed how time and time again you always gave Amy the brush off. What's wrong with being with her anyways?"  
  
"It's not something you would understand." Answered Sonic. "Nor is it something I'm willing to share with someone like you."  
  
"Fine, be that way." Answered Rouge, grinning. "Then you won't be interested to know that I've set her up with somebody to go with her to Twinkle Park tonight."  
  
This statement nearly made Sonic stumble. "What?! That's surprising. With who?"  
  
Rouge grinned. "Be there tonight, and see for yourself. She'll be waiting for him at the cotton candy stand.but you wouldn't care about that, now would you?"  
  
"Um..er..o..Of course not!" he stammered a bit. "I'm just curious, that's all."  
  
Rouge snatched the first ticket from Sonic's hand. "Information like that isn't for free you know. Thanks for paying for my ticket."  
  
Omochao spoke again. "Did you know that Rouge is planning to st.." was all it could say before Rouge kicked it into the ocean.  
  
"Planning to what?" asked Tails suspiciously.  
  
Rouge thought of something quickly. "Um, I'm planning to stay silent about Big breaking your surfboard."  
  
Then she quickly flew off as Tails was trying in a desperate attempt to convince Big that his Froggy was not inside his surfboard.  
  
  
  
(Angel Island)  
  
  
  
Knuckles was just sitting there, bored as usual, guarding the Master Emerald. He was quite surprised that Eggman, Rouge, or anybody else has been trying to steal it that whole year. Still, he was bored.  
  
"Is there anything better to do right now?" he said to himself.  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared.  
  
"Hi. I'm Omochao. I'm here to help you."  
  
Knuckles looked at Omochao. "You know, I'm so bored right now, I'm willing to listen to what you have to say."  
  
"To relieve your boredom, come to Twinkle Park tonight. Everybody is going to be there, including Sonic, Tails, Rouge, and Amy."  
  
"Well, since Rouge is going to be there, that means I won't have to worry about my Master Emerald being stolen."  
  
"Did you know that Sonic is jealous because Amy is going out with another guy?"  
  
"Really? I've got to see this! Anything else?"  
  
"Did you know that Rouge likes you?"  
  
This statement made Knuckles blush. "Um, I don't know what to say. I couldn't trust her though. She'd probably steal my Emerald the first chance she got."  
  
"Did you know that she want's your Emerald?"  
  
"Thank you for stating the obvious." Said Knuckles sarcastically.  
  
"You're welcome." Answered Omochao, and then flew off.  
  
Knuckles continued to think aloud. "Hm.Twinkle Park...tonight.everybody will be there.I guess I could show up. After all, I deserve a break. Besides, who's going steal the Master Emerald right now? Eggman hasn't been heard from for a year now, and Rouge is going to be at the park. That's it, I made up my mind. I'm going to Twinkle Park tonight."  
  
So Knuckles hid the Master Emerald in a new location, and got ready for his visit to the park.  
  
  
  
(Station Square apartments)  
  
  
  
Shadow was in his living room, watching the news. He didn't go out much, and did most of his training at night. He was also thinking about how Sonic and Tails saved him that day, how Amy and Rouge helped him find a place and a job, how Eggman hasn't been heard from, how Knuckles is so devoted to protecting the Master Emerald, about Maria, and how annoying Omochao can be.  
  
"(This is so depressing)." Shadow thought to himself. "(How is it that they find happiness when there are so many people suffering? *Sighs * I guess it's because of hero's like Sonic, helping them when big dangers are about. If helping people is what Maria meant by bringing them happiness, then I'll do it. I won't go to the egotistical lengths that Sonic usually does, but I'll help them in my own manner)."  
  
While Shadow was thinking about this, who should drop by next to him but Omochao.  
  
"Hi. I'm Omochao. I'm here to help you."  
  
This nearly made Shadow fall out of his chair. "What are you doing here?! How did you get in?!  
  
Omochao just continued to talk as usual. "To help people, come to Twinkle Park tonight."  
  
"Why would people need help there?"  
  
"Amy wants Sonic to notice her, Rouge is in debt, and Tails' surfboard is broken."  
  
"What does this have to do with me?"  
  
"You can help them, as they have helped you."  
  
"Hm, I didn't think of it that way. I suppose I do owe them for all of their generosity. Yes, I'll go.now get out of here!"  
  
And with that, Omochao flew out of the window, which Shadow promptly shut.  
  
  
  
(Twinkle Park: Nightfall)  
  
  
  
Tails is standing in front of the entrance with a stopwatch. Rouge flies by and notices this, so she lands right next to him.  
  
"What are you doing?" She asked. "You look really stupid."  
  
"Oh, hello Rouge." He answered. "Sonic wants me to time his speed arrival. I'm supposed to start as soon as I hear the phone ring."  
  
"I see. Is he still trying to go faster than the speed of light?"  
  
"He says he wants to be the fastest thing alive, no pun intended."  
  
Before he could speak further, the phone rings. Tails quickly starts the timer. In an extremely short amount of time, the blue hedgehog stops right in front of the two.  
  
"2.59 seconds, Sonic." Confirmed the golden fox.  
  
"Is that all?" he asked, sounding a little surprised. "I must be slacking off. I can do 'much' better than that."  
  
"Always the showoff, I see." Inquired Rouge, giving an unimpressed look.  
  
"It's not showing off when you're the fastest." Quipped Sonic as he made his winning pose. "C'mon Tails. Let's start having fun!"  
  
And so they left, going faster than when they came in. The white bat just grinned as she thought to herself: "(This is going to be interesting. But how am I going to get that master emerald without Knuckles noticing)?"  
  
As if to answer her question, who should she spot entering the park, than the same echidna that was supposed to be guarding the master emerald?  
  
"(I guess even guarding the master emerald requires a break sometimes)." She said to herself. "(All that's left to do now is to give Amy a quick fix on her problem, and sneak out of here before Knuckles notices I'm gone)."  
  
She smiled, and then went to the Ferris wheel, where Amy would be waiting.  
  
  
  
(Ferris wheel: Ten minutes later)  
  
  
  
Amy was at the Ferris wheel, waiting patiently for Rouge. After a few more minutes, she finally arrived.  
  
"What took you so long?" Asked Amy with a look of glee. "I saw Sonic, and he talked to me, and said something about hearing me with a date. When I said that I didn't have one, he smiled, whispered something to Tails, and left."  
  
Rouge raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you happy? You just ruined any insecurities he might have had. What is there to be happy about?"  
  
The pink hedgehog smiled even deeper. "Because he said that he'll ride on some rides with me, just as long as I don't go with anyone else. He said that it's dangerous to be alone with someone you don't know, but I know him better than that. He was actually worried that I was with someone else. I told you he cared!"  
  
"I'm happy to hear that." Answered Rouge, more so glad that she didn't need much of an excuse to leave now. "I need to go tend to some much needed business, and now I can do so."  
  
"But what if I need your help on something?" Amy asked. "Unexpected things could arise."  
  
Just then, as if to answer "her" question, Omochao flies in-between them.  
  
"Hi, I'm Omochao. I'm here to help you." It answered.  
  
"(Talk about great timing)!" Thought Rouge as she was staring at the little robot. Then she spoke aloud. "Omochao can help you with any loose ends in case you need it. Oh, and before I go, if you see Knuckles, tell him I had a bad snack, and I'm in the bathroom."  
  
"But that would be dishonest." Said the robot, looking up from where it was standing.  
  
"If you keep silent about it," grinned Rouge, "I'll find things for you to help me with."  
  
This made Omochao's eyes light up in delight. For some strange reason, it always loved to help people. "Okay, thanks."  
  
"What's dishonest?" asked Amy, a little puzzled about the situation. She shrugged it off, then waved goodbye to Rouge as she flew low out of the park. After that, she turned to Omochao. "Ready to help me?" She kindly asked.  
  
"Ready and waiting!" The little robot beamed.  
  
So the two went to search for Sonic.  
  
  
  
End of chapter 1.  
  
A/N: So, how do you like it so far? I would've made this chapter longer, but I wanted to wait until I got some feedback first, just in case I didn't get any reviews. If you have any suggestions on how the next chapter should be, please let me know. Any questions, comments, compliments, and (constructive) criticisms are welcomed. Please, no flames. If there was something about this chapter that you didn't like, please let me know. Well, see you next chapter. 


	2. ch2

You can find the disclaimer in chapter 1. By the way, thank you all for the reviews. ^_^ Well, on with the fic.  
  
  
  
Sonic Tales Chapter 2  
  
  
  
(Twinkle Park)  
  
  
  
Amy was waiting for Sonic and Tails to finish their games when Knuckles showed up, looking a little relieved, and a little suspicious.  
  
"Hi Amy." He said. "Have you seen Rouge? It's usually not a good thing when she disappears like that."  
  
Amy thought about what Rouge said for a moment, then responded. "She's in the bathroom. It was probably something she ate."  
  
"Well, that's a relief, sort of."  
  
"Are you having a good time?"  
  
"As long as I know Rouge is in there, instead of being somewhere else, trying to steal my master emerald, then everything's fine."  
  
"I'm having a good time too."  
  
"You don't seem to be."  
  
"That's because I'm waiting for Sonic. He promised me that he was going to take me on a few rides and games, just as soon as he's done with this last ride with Tails."  
  
"Are you sure you can trust him on that one?"  
  
Amy's smile became even wider. "That's why I'm watching from here. Just as soon as their off, I'll spot them, no matter where they go."  
  
"Sounds like a plan to me." Knuckles said, then thought of something, and grinned. "But just in case you can't spot him, I'll help you out. That hedgehog isn't going to split the scene while I'm around."  
  
"Thank you! I really appreciate it." Amy beamed. "Just five more minutes."  
  
"By the way, what ride are they on?"  
  
"The monster roller coaster. Sonic bet the ticket guy that he and Tails could last ten minutes on it at top speed. He's doing well so far."  
  
The echidna just shook his head. He was used to Sonic playing speed games to earn quick cash.  
  
Amy looked around. "Hey, has anyone seen Omochao?"  
  
  
  
(Angel Island)  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, Rouge finally made it to Angel Island, and is standing in front of the Master Emerald.  
  
"It sure looks pretty." She said to herself. "Much better than when it was broken into small shards." She then took it from its stand. She was about to take out the replica, when she heard a whirring sound coming from the sky. She looked up to see none other than Dr. Eggman, landing his egg mobile.  
  
"(Damn)!" She thought to herself. "(Out of all the times to make an appearance, he has to make one right now)!"  
  
Eggman finished landing his machine, and came out with the egg walker. He glanced at Rouge, and then noticed she had the Master Emerald.  
  
"Greetings, Rouge." He said. "How kind of you retrieve the Master Emerald for me. Now, if you hand it over right now, I promise to let you go."  
  
"No way!" She shouted. "I stole this fair and square! I need the money, and I'm going to sell it to the highest bidder!" She had just realized what she just said, then grinned. "So, how about it? How much would you be willing to pay for this?"  
  
The evil scientist smiled wickedly at the offer. "How much did you have in mind?"  
  
"Well, I want this to be worth it, so, I'd say about, 3 million."  
  
He thought about it for a moment, then responded. "You drive a hard bargain, but since I can afford it, I'll pay your price." He then handed her the money, and she handed him the Master Emerald. "Pleasure doing business with you."  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared.  
  
"To avoid suspicion, place a false Master Emerald in place of the real one."  
  
"Already taken care of." Said Rouge as she pulled out the fake emerald, and put it on the pedestal.  
  
Eggman placed the Master Emerald inside his Egg mobile, and then took off to his "secret" base.  
  
"Well, that's that." Said Rouge. "After I pay off my bills, I'll just steal it back from him, repeat the deal, and steal it back again." Then she turned to Omochao. "And unless you want to stop helping people, I suggest you keep quiet about what I just said."  
  
"I love to help people. If I keep quiet about your secret, I'll be helping you. I'm helpful."  
  
"Good." She said, and then they both went back to Twinkle Park.  
  
  
  
(Twinkle Park)  
  
  
  
Rouge snuck into the park without being seen. She spotted Knuckles and Amy by the bathrooms. She thought of how she could get in without being seen. Then Omochao answered.  
  
"To get into the bathrooms quietly, create a diversion."  
  
"Good idea." She said. Then she picked up Omochao, and threw it at Knuckles. She used his moment of dizziness to quickly fly into the restrooms. Within a couple of minutes, she walked out casually.  
  
"Oh hi Knuckles. I didn't even know you were here." She lied.  
  
"Well, I guess I can partially thank 'you' for that." He said while rubbing the bump on his head. Then he turned to Omochao. "What was that for anyways?"  
  
Before it could respond, Sonic and Tails arrived. Tails had a bright smile on his face, holding a lot of money. Sonic had a look of triumph, and wasn't the least bit modest to show it.  
  
"I take it your bet went well." Said Knuckles.  
  
"They didn't even know what hit them." Answered the blue hedgehog proudly. "I run faster than lightning. What could've 'ever' possessed them to make that bet with me? With great speeds like mine, roller coasters are 'SO' slow!"  
  
Amy went up to Sonic, and placed her arm in-between his. "You remember your promise, right?"  
  
Sonic gulped. "Y-yeah. How could I forget?"  
  
"Yay! C'mon, let's go! Rouge, you can escort Knuckles."  
  
"Gladly." Said Rouge as she winked at the echidna, who could only respond with a strange look. "Don't worry, I'm not up to anything...right now, that is."  
  
"Well, alright." He said.  
  
"Besides, it'll be nice to get to know the 'real' you. Not the grouchy 'give me my emerald' you."  
  
"I wouldn't be like that if you didn't try to steal it."  
  
Omochao interrupted. "If she wasn't like that, you would've never known her in the first place.  
  
"He's right, you know." Rouge said as she slid her arm into his. "You can also get to know the 'real' me."  
  
"You mean you're not just a jewel thief/agent who deceives people?" he asked jokingly.  
  
"I can assure you I have very good reasons for my actions. But let's not talk about that right now. Our debates only keeping Amy and Sonic from enjoying themselves."  
  
"Actually, we don't mind." Said Sonic.  
  
"Oh Sonic, you're such a kidder!" Said Amy as she hugged him. "What should we do first?"  
  
"I know!" said Tails excitedly. "Let's play some games! Sonic can win prizes for me and Amy!"  
  
"Sounds good." Said Knuckles.  
  
"And you could win some prizes for me." Said Rouge, grinning at him.  
  
"We'll see." Said Knuckles, still a bit suspicious of her, but not as much.  
  
  
  
(Eggmans 'secret' base)  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, Dr. Eggman was very busy with his newest creation. He had already stored the Master Emerald away for safekeeping.  
  
"Ah," he started, "this plan will surely succeed. With the Master Emerald in my possession, I can install it in my latest device, just as soon as I'm finished building it. In fact, I'm almost finished. This new suit of armor will give me the power of the chaos emeralds! Well, not exactly. I need to find the chaos emeralds first, then I can install them in the suit, and 'then' I can rule the world!"  
  
After a while, he finished the mechanical armor, and then got out the Master Emerald. He brought it to this other machine. It was huge and cylinder shaped, dull gray, connected to the floor and ceiling, and had an open/close compartment in the middle. He opened it, place the Master Emerald inside of it, and shut it. After activating it, it made some whirring noises, and many bright lights illuminated across the entire laboratory.  
  
"There, that'll do it." He said triumphantly. "The primary purpose of the Master Emerald was to create an impregnable security system in my base, since it doesn't seem to be very secret. I wonder why that is? No matter, on with the present! The Master Emeralds secondary purpose is to easily locate the seven chaos emeralds, which I will do right now!"  
  
He typed a few keys on his master computer, looked through many files, and waited for the results, which came only seconds later. Then he gave an evil grin as the coordinates were appearing on the monitor. The evil scientist wrote down the coordinates, and then printed the results just to be on the safe side. After examining them, he gave a wicked evil scientist type laugh.  
  
"Those chaos emeralds are as good as mine! The only thing that could stop me now would be that meddlesome hedgehog!" He then paced around a few steps, trying to think of a way to get Sonic out of his way long enough to search for the chaos emeralds. "I wish I had some help right about now!"  
  
That was when Omochao appeared.  
  
"Hi. I am Omochao. I'm here to help you."  
  
This surprised the evil scientist. "How did you get past the security?!"  
  
Omochao just shrugged its shoulders.  
  
"No matter." He continued. "Do you have any advice that will allow me to distract that hedgehog for a long period of time?"  
  
"Sonic or Shadow?"  
  
"Oh yeah, I forgot about 'that' hedgehog. Well, both of them."  
  
"To distract Sonic, look for something that he likes, and keep him there."  
  
"Hmm, I'll have to look into Sonics files, but that is a very possible feat. Now what about Shadow?"  
  
"To distract Shadow, look into the heart."  
  
Eggman frowned. "What kind of advice is that?! It doesn't make any sense! I thought you were supposed to be helpful!"  
  
"I am. I provide hints to help you."  
  
"Oh, just hints. I'll have to think on my own as to what that means."  
  
"To have fun, go to Twinkle Park."  
  
"I'm done with you now." Said Eggman as he catapulted Omochao out of his base. "Now, on with my plan!"  
  
  
  
(Twinkle Park)  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, Shadow has finally made it to the theme park, but the security guard wouldn't let him in.  
  
"I have a mission in there!" He exclaimed.  
  
"And I have a job to do." The guard answered. "If you don't have any money, then you can't enter."  
  
"Well, in that case," said Shadow as he pulled out his chaos emerald, "CHAOS, CONTROL!"  
  
And in a blinding flash, Shadow was gone, leaving a very dumbfounded guard behind.  
  
When Shadow was done using 'chaos control', he found himself in the middle of the theme park.  
  
"So much for having to pay to get in." he said while putting away his chaos emerald. "This shouldn't be too difficult. All I have to do is complete a few good deeds, nothing to it."  
  
He looked around for someone who might be in distress. He didn't have long to wait until he heard a child crying. He went to the little girl, who was only three feet, wore a pink frilly dress, and short blonde hair.  
  
"(Definitely a human child)." He thought, then said aloud, "What's with you?"  
  
"I've lost my mommy!" she said in between sobs. "I can't find her anywhere!"  
  
"Well, I could help you find her. What does she look like?"  
  
"She was a tall lady, and pretty, and, and had, hair."  
  
Shadows eyes narrowed. "That doesn't tell me much."  
  
"But that's all I know!"  
  
Shadow groaned. He realized that this wasn't going to be easy. "Tell you what. Just follow me, and together, we'll help you find your mother."  
  
"Really? You'll do that for me?"  
  
"Yeah, sure."  
  
"But, I can't."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"I can't because mommy said never to talk to strangers."  
  
"But you just talked to me."  
  
"Oh, well, then I can't talk to you anymore. Go away, Mr. Stranger."  
  
The black hedgehog was about to blow his top. "(Annoying brat)!" he thought. "(Does she want to find her mother or not)?!" He calmed himself down, and then spoke again calmly. "Listen, if I tell you my name, I'll no longer be a stranger, since you'll already know who I am. Sound fair?"  
  
The child nodded.  
  
"Good. My name is Shadow. Now that you know me, what is your name?"  
  
"Maria."  
  
This made Shadow almost pass out. "(Why did fate have to be so cruel as to make me help someone with the same name as the one I once cared about?! I know it's probably just a coincidence, but c'mon, I'm still not over it)!"  
  
"Um, Shadow? Are you alright?"  
  
Upon hearing this, he regained his thoughts. "Yeah, I'm alright. Let's go find your mother." He continued to think, "(I'll just go along with it. Who am I to mess with fate)?"  
  
So he took the child's hand, and they started their search for Maria's mother.  
  
  
  
(Elsewhere in Twinkle Park)  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, Sonic, Amy, Tails, Knuckles, Rouge, and even Omochao were in the section of the park where the games are (don't ask for an exact location though). The first game they played was the fish catching game. Sonic went first.  
  
"Can I use my hands instead of the net?" he asked the keeper.  
  
"No!" he answered.  
  
"Sheesh, alright then." Sonic said, and then eyed the fish very carefully. He knew that the nets broke easily in the carnival games, so he made sure to use precise aim. After a few seconds of watching the fish, he swiped them with the net with lightning speed, catching every fish, and having them tossed at Amy, who successfully caught them.  
  
The fish keeper was awed with surprise. "H-how did you do that?" he asked.  
  
"Simple." Sonic answered in a cool tone. "I 'am' the worlds fastest hedgehog after all." He then looked at the prizes. "And, since I caught all of them, which entitles me to three of the prizes."  
  
"What?! What are you talking about?! You only paid for one game!"  
  
"Tails, please examine this fishing net." He said while handing it to the orange fox.  
  
"Sure thing Sonic." He said while accepting it. He looked at every angle, and then handed it back to Sonic. "Just as I suspected. These nets were dried by an open flame before use, making them break with contact of water."  
  
"Just as I thought." Said Sonic. Then he gave a smile, turned to the fish keeper, and said, "We'll pretend we didn't examine the net, if you give us free choices of the prizes. Do we have a deal?"  
  
Grumbling, the fish keeper responded, "Yeah, sure. Just be quick about it. I guess that was a pretty stupid thing to try to out speed Sonic." He was hoping Sonic didn't hear that part, but unfortunately for him, it was heard, and only made the hedgehogs grin even larger.  
  
"Oh Sonic, you're so tactful!" Beamed Amy as she hugged him tightly. "How did you know?"  
  
"Um, Amy? That's too tight." He said. Then she let go. "Anyways," he continued, "I can't take 'all' of the credit for that. My buddy Tails here once told me about how some carnival games try to rip people off by rigging their games. I would've been clueless about it if he didn't say anything about it, not that my lightning fast reflexes didn't have anything to do with it, like I said before, you should also thank Tails for that bit of info."  
  
"That's right." Said Tails proudly. "Now let's take some prizes!"  
  
Amy took a Sonic and Amy plushy, Tails took a plushy of himself, and Rouge took a plushy of herself. Knuckles looked around, but didn't find what he was looking for.  
  
"Hey. Why don't they have a plushy of me?" the echidna asked.  
  
"Perhaps you're not popular enough?" answered Sonic as he grinned at the Sonic and Tails plushies that he took for himself.  
  
"Sorry about that." Answered the fish keeper. "That was a hot selling item. The other stands took them for themselves before I could get them."  
  
Knuckles grinned at this. "Hear that, Sonic? 'I'm' a hot selling item."  
  
"You sure are." Cooed Rouge. This made the echidna slightly blush.  
  
"Did you know that there are more Knuckles plushies at the ring tossing games?" Omochao inquired. "There are also light and dark chao plushies."  
  
"Hear that?" asked Rouge, then turned toward Knuckles. "I could win one for you, if you don't mind accepting prizes from a cute girl."  
  
"Mind it?" he said. "I don't mind, if you're good at ring toss, that is."  
  
"Oh, I'm very good. So good, in fact, that I'll even win a plushy of myself for you as well."  
  
"Kind of strange how there are so many plushies in carnivals." Sonic said aloud.  
  
"I know what you mean." Tails agreed. "They're so easy to win at carnivals, but so hard to acquire everywhere else. If it wasn't for Twinkle Park, I would've had to pay 30,000 Mobians, just for a plushy of myself."  
  
"They range that much?"  
  
"Yeah. And plushies of you range from 50,000 to 60,000."  
  
"Yeah," Sonic grinned, "I guess I 'am' pretty valuable."  
  
Rouge rolled her eyes. "If you two are done talking," she continued, "we'd like to continue on with our fun time."  
  
So the small group went to the ring tossing game.  
  
  
  
(Twinkle Park: food court)  
  
  
  
Shadow was impatiently waiting at the food court for the little girl to think about where her mother was.  
  
"Are you sure this is where you last saw her?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah." She answered. "There are so many people though."  
  
"Then why don't you just ask them?"  
  
"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."  
  
"(This is taking too long)!"  
  
"Which one is my mom?"  
  
Shadow was finally out of patience. Without the girl noticing, he brought her and himself on top of a tall tree, and shouted; "WILL THE PARENT OR PARENTS OF A CHILD NAMED MARIA, PLEASE COME FORWARD RIGHT NOW!" He then waited for a response.  
  
Some of the people were just shrugging their shoulders. Others were just giving him dirty looks. None were responding.  
  
"I guess she isn't here." He said to Maria.  
  
Just then, a young woman came running up to the tree, waving her arms. She had blonde hair that was about shoulder length, a green sundress, and a sunhat to complete it.  
  
"That's my daughter!" she shouted. "Please bring her to me!"  
  
"Mommy!" the child cried in delight as she jumped off the tree, and ran to her mothers arms. "I thought I lost you!"  
  
"I thought I lost you too." She answered, hugging her daughter. She looked up at Shadow, and signaled him to come over there.  
  
The black hedgehog just shrugged, and then walked over there. "You're daughter is now found."  
  
"Thank you so much!" she said happily. "I can't even say how grateful I am that you showed up when you did!"  
  
"It's nothing." Shadow answered. "Just helping out."  
  
"By the way, what's your name?"  
  
"Shadow."  
  
"Well thank you, Shadow. My name is Maria. You already met my daughter, Maria."  
  
The hedgehog's eyes bulged out. How is it that such a coincidence could occur?  
  
"Is something wrong?" Sr. Maria asked.  
  
"N-nothing." Shadow answered. "I was just thinking about something."  
  
"Well, thanks again for finding my daughter."  
  
"I have an idea!" Lil Maria beamed. "Since Shadow found me, why don't we let him come with us?"  
  
"I couldn't intrude." Shadow answered. "Besides, I'm broke. I had to sneak in here just to get to walk around."  
  
"That's okay! Mom has lots of money!"  
  
"Really, it isn't necessary."  
  
"I think that's a great idea." Sr. Maria finally said. "And don't worry about money. What you did for my daughter and I was worth more than what money could buy." She looked around at the crowd that was listening to her conversation. "Besides, after my daughters little outburst about my having a lot of money, I could use an escort."  
  
"What makes you think you could trust 'me'?" Shadow asked.  
  
"That's an easy one." She answered. "Have you ever heard of the saying; 'the eyes are the windows to the soul?"  
  
"Yeah, what about it?"  
  
"Well your eyes say that despite your appearance, you're a good person inside. So let's just go."  
  
"Well, alright."  
  
"Yay! Shadow's coming with us!" Lil Maria said in delight.  
  
So the three of them went on their way.  
  
  
  
(Eggmans 'secret' base)  
  
  
  
Dr. Eggman was now busy searching through Sonics files, the one's that the government stores. After a while of reading, he exits the program, leans back, and laughs. After a good laugh, he sighs.  
  
"Ah, I always enjoy an evil laugh every now and then." He said. "Now, on to business! According to that hedgehog's profile, he loves to participate in events that will win him money and the attention of his adoring fans. While this might be somewhat difficult and expensive to pull off, no plan is beyond my comprehension. With that annoying hedgehog distracted, nothing can stop me from collecting the chaos emeralds! Once I have achieved that, I will obliterate Sonic and his friends for good! Hahahaha! Well, I better start planning some events."  
  
Then he turned on his projector at Twinkle Park. The camera shown many people having fun. He saw Sonic and his friends having fun as well. "This won't be too difficult of a plan to execute after all." He then turned his gaze to where Shadow was. "As for 'that' hedgehog, I have special plans for him and his emerald! Mobius will soon be mine, for 'I' have the master plan!"  
  
After that, he laughed a bit, and then proceeded with his work.  
  
  
  
End of chapter 2  
  
  
  
A/N: Well, I hope you all liked this chapter. Tell me what you think. In the meantime, I'll be thinking of what to put into the next chapter. Well, until then, goodbye for now. 


	3. ch3

~Find the disclaimer in chapter 1. Well, on with the story. ~  
  
  
  
Sonic Tales Chapter 3  
  
  
  
Sonic and the gang were at leaving the ring tossing games, each carrying their prizes.  
  
"I find it really hard to believe that Rouge was able land more rings than me." Said Sonic.  
  
"Just admit that I'm better than you." Said Rouge. "It'll save you the humiliation."  
  
"You just caught me on a bad day."  
  
"Uh-huh, sure."  
  
"By the way," said Amy, "how about we go to the tunnel of love? It'll be so romantic!"  
  
Sonic gulped at this. Knuckles slightly blushed. Tails rolled his eyes in boredom.  
  
"That sounds wonderful!" said Rouge happily. "I've never been on it before. It'll be a nice experience, right, Knux?"  
  
"Um, yeah, sure." Said the already red echidna.  
  
She noticed this and responded. "I bet it's also 'your' first time being alone with someone in a dark place as well."  
  
"Kind of, sort of....yeah."  
  
"Then it's settled. Let's go."  
  
"Yay!" Amy beamed. She was about to grab Sonics arm, but Rouge pulled her away. "Huh? What gives?"  
  
The white bat turned to the gang. "Will you excuse us? We need to freshen up." Then she took Amy to the restrooms.  
  
"What's with them?" asked Knuckles.  
  
"Beats me." Said Sonic. "But, this is a great opportunity to make an exit."  
  
"I don't think so!" Knuckles said in a stern voice. "Let the poor girl have some fun. She 'is' innocent after all."  
  
"He has a point." Said Tails. "We 'have' been running away from Amy a bit too much."  
  
"And with good reason." Answered Sonic.  
  
"Maybe, but perhaps with Rouge around, she won't be as hyper."  
  
"Well, maybe you're right."  
  
"I usually am."  
  
"For you, buddy, I'll stick through it until the end."  
  
"I'm glad to hear that." Said Knuckles. "Besides, it'll be fun to know that you'll be trapped alone with Amy."  
  
"Have fun with Rouge." Grinned Sonic. "And try to keep the noise down."  
  
The echidna blushed at this statement, but he didn't say anything.  
  
"I guess I'll go as well." Said Tails. "(I want to see what's going to happen)."  
  
"I'll accompany you." Said Omochao.  
  
Tails just rolled his eyes.  
  
  
  
(Meanwhile, at the restrooms)  
  
  
  
When the two were inside the restrooms, Rouge let go of Amy's arm.  
  
"Why are we here?" asked Amy. "I freshened up before I even came here."  
  
"That was just a diversion." Answered Rouge. "I'm here to talk to 'you'!"  
  
"Why? What did I do?"  
  
"Only ignoring what I said."  
  
Amy thought for a second, and then answered with her head down, "I guess I 'did' make too many forward moves."  
  
"And what has that earned you?"  
  
"Sonic wanting to run."  
  
"That's right, so here's the plan. Listen closely, because I'm only going to say this once."  
  
After a while of whispering, and Amy nodding, they finally were about to leave the restroom, when a little girl knocked them down.  
  
"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed. "I have to go really bad!" Then she ran inside one of the stalls.  
  
When the exited, who should they find but Shadow, waiting impatiently outside with some woman.  
  
"What are you doing here?" asked Amy.  
  
"That's my own business." Answered Shadow.  
  
"It looks like babysitting." Said Rouge.  
  
"It's a long story that I don't feel like telling." Answered the black hedgehog. "By the way, if you see Sonic, tell him, leave me out of his business. I'm not a babysitter you know."  
  
"You look like one to me."  
  
"I'm talking about Amy! There I was, taking my afternoon siesta, when I was woken up by a loud banging on the door. She thought that Sonic had dropped by, and was wondering where he was. I wasn't about to lose some sleep over 'his' responsibilities, so I told her how to sneak up on him, provided she leave immediately. The rest is history."  
  
"Sounds like you don't have much of a social life, if you'll forgive my intrusion." Said Sr. Maria.  
  
Shadow sighed. "Forgiven. I never really thought about it."  
  
"Lonely?" asked Rouge.  
  
"After seeing what Sonic has to go through? No thanks! I'm only interested in two things. Power, and helping those in need."  
  
"Whatever."  
  
Lil Maria has just got out of the restroom, feeling very refreshed. "I'm done. Let's go on some rides!"  
  
"Bye Shadow." Said Amy. "Sonic and I are going in the tunnel of love. So are Knuckles and Rouge."  
  
Shadow almost laughed at the statement, but only showed a smile. "So what happened? Did you twist his arm or something?"  
  
"No, but he 'was' worried about me."  
  
"This should be amusing. Tell me about it when I see you again."  
  
"Sure thing!"  
  
Then he turned to Rouge. "And what about the echidna? What made his normally introverted self decide to go out? And with 'you' no less."  
  
"Like you're one to talk." Rouge answered. "He just felt he needed a break. After all, who else, besides Eggman and I, would try to steal the master emerald?"  
  
"I see your point, although I 'still' wouldn't trust you."  
  
"Let'sgolet'sgolet'sgo!" exclaimed lil Maria impatiently.  
  
"Well, good luck then." Said Shadow as he left with the two Marias.  
  
"Well," Rouge said while turning to Amy, "you're date awaits. Just remember what I said, and you'll be fine."  
  
So the two walked back to the others. When they reached them, they entered the boats. Sonic and Amy were in the first boat, Knuckles and Rouge were in the second, and Tails and Omochao were in the third.  
  
  
  
(Meanwhile, at Eggmans 'secret' base)  
  
  
  
The mad scientist has just finished the preparations, and was viewing all of them through a monitor. He decided to execute his plan tomorrow, and just observe his future victims for now. She was watching Shadow at the moment, which was at the Ferris wheel.  
  
"This is interesting." Said Eggman. "That dark hedgehog actually seems to be enjoying himself. Well, I hope he has a lot of fun tonight, since once my plan is executed, he'll be begging for relief."  
  
Then he changed the camera to where Sonic and Amy were. "As for 'that' meddlesome hedgehog, I have big plans for him, and 'that' pink hedgehog is just the way to do it."  
  
He then turned the camera to Tail's and Omochao. "I'll have all angles covered, so I won't have to worry about that little upstart child creating some kind of mechanical device to thwart my evil plans. I think I'll execute my plan for 'him' tonight!"  
  
He pushed the button that revealed the little shack that Sonic and Tail's live in. After a few more key pressing, a sonic wave emitted from the base, and traveled all the way to the little house in a perfect alignment, as to not disturb the other machines that might've been in its path. It hit the house, which then glowed an eerie green light. After several seconds, he turned the machine off, and within seconds, the house was back to normal.  
  
"There! All communications and tracking devices have been disabled. Every machine in the house now has an untraceable virus that'll only seem like the computers are dysfunctional, eliminating all suspicions leading to me! And 'should' that little white bat reveal my involvement, I have 'just' the thing for her!"  
  
The camera was now turned to where Knuckles and Rouge were. "I'll be keeping an eye out on you. This time, I cover all of my tracks! Hahahaha! And judging by how close you seem to be to that echidna, it won't be long before you try to steal the master emerald back from me, and when you do, I'll be ready. There is 'no' way those two hedgehogs or that little fox are going to discover my plans before they're ready to be made! I'll make certain of it!"  
  
Dr. Eggman laughed a bit more before talking again. "You shall see, Sonic, just 'who' is the true ruler of Mobius. Then again, you won't be alive to realize that."  
  
Then he laughed some more, and then continued watching.  
  
  
  
(Back to Twinkle Park, the tunnel of love)  
  
  
  
Tails was just sitting on the boat, bored.  
  
"It's too bad I didn't bring any listening devices." He said. "Then I could hear what's going on."  
  
"Did you know that we are too far to see anything?" asked Omochao.  
  
"I could've told you that."  
  
"To make perfect eavesdropping, fly above them."  
  
"I don't know. What if they see me?"  
  
"They won't. At least, I don't think they will."  
  
"Well, here goes."  
  
Tails flew as high as he could go on the tunnel. He passed by Rouge and Knuckles boat, and was now right above Sonic and Amy's boat. He listened in on the conversation.  
  
"Sonic?" Amy asked. "Can I ask you a question?"  
  
"Sure, why not." Said Sonic in a bored tone.  
  
"What do you look for in a woman?"  
  
"Nice try, but I'm smart enough not to fall for that one."  
  
Remembering what Rouge told her, she grinned. "Just as I thought. Rouge was right."  
  
"Huh? Right about what?"  
  
I don't know. You probably wouldn't be interested."  
  
"I am I am!"  
  
"Well, alright. She said that the only reason you run from me is because you're afraid."  
  
"In a manner of speaking."  
  
"She meant afraid of relationships. She also said that you're the type of person who loves 'em and leaves 'em."  
  
"Rouge said that?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"Well, when she's right, she's right, except for the afraid of relationships part."  
  
"That's what I said. She laughed afterwards, saying that you couldn't stay in a relationship if your life depended on it."  
  
Sonic narrowed his eyes. He could see where this was going. Amy quickly spoke up.  
  
"Care to make a wager?"  
  
"What kind?"  
  
"You and I go out for one week. If, by the end of that week, you don't have any feelings for me, I'll leave you alone forever."  
  
"And what do 'you' get if 'you' win?"  
  
"You, of course."  
  
Sonic chuckled. "Oh, I see. This'll be the easiest bet in history. You have a deal!"  
  
The two shook hands. Amy smiled, and Sonic grinned.  
  
"(This is too easy)!" thought Sonic. "(One week is nothing! I don't think Amy thought through this hard enough. I almost feel sorry for her)."  
  
"(He fell for it)!" thought Amy. "(I just hope Rouge is right. This sounds just too easy. I wish I had been paying attention to what she was saying about details. It was something about long run. Oh well. At least Sonic will be with me for one whole week)."  
  
"And Tail's can be our witness." Said Sonic, and then looked straight up. "Right, buddy?"  
  
The surprise made him fall in the boat. "How did you know?"  
  
"Only the faint whirring."  
  
"Hehehe, oops."  
  
"How long is this ride anyways? It should've been over."  
  
"Yeah." Said Amy. "Not that I'm complaining or anything, but isn't the ride only supposed to last for seven minutes?"  
  
Tails shook his head in grief. "That was 'before' Rouge paid the ticket guy to make it last longer. Thirty-five minutes longer! "  
  
"Why would she do that?"  
  
"Who knows? Probably to be alone with Knuckles or something."  
  
Amy slightly blushed. Sonic laughed a little. Tails just sat there, a bit confused as to what was going on.  
  
"Well, I'll be asleep if anyone needs me." Tails finally said. "Wake me up when this is over." Then he fell asleep.  
  
"Well," Sonic started to say, "What do we do now?"  
  
"I'm not sure. What do 'you' want to do?"  
  
Sonic looked at his watch, saw the boats going in circles, repeating their courses, and sighed.  
  
"I'd like to take a nap until this is over."  
  
"Can I rest with you?"  
  
"Normally I'd say, no freaking way! However, since we have that bet going on, might as well get it over with. Good thing I'm a light sleeper."  
  
Then he leaned back, and went to sleep. Amy rested against his shoulder, and put her arm across him, then closed her eyes. Sonic almost jumped from where he was standing, but decided not to be a baby about it. So he just went back to sleep.  
  
  
  
(Meanwhile, in Knuckles and Rouges boat)  
  
  
  
"I don't get it." Knuckles said as he looked at his watch. "This ride should've been over by now. What gives?"  
  
"Who knows?" Rouge lied. "Might as well make the most of it."  
  
"Like how? I didn't bring any cards or dice."  
  
"Want to play a game?"  
  
"Depends on what kind of game it is."  
  
It'll be fun. I call it, 'what color emerald am I holding?"  
  
"You have a chaos emerald?"  
  
"I sure do. Want to trade?"  
  
"I don't think so. That's 'my' master emerald!"  
  
"I'm just kidding." Rouge laughed. "You really need to loosen up. I think you've been on that island for far too long."  
  
"I am the protector of the emerald. It's my job."  
  
"Tell me. When's the last time you've dated?"  
  
"If you're implying that I've never been on a date before.....never mind."  
  
Rouge placed her arms around the echidna, which made him cause to get a deep, red blush.  
  
"You guessed the right color." She said as she took out the red chaos emerald. "Your prize, is this." She then kissed him on the lips.  
  
Knuckles froze. Rouge sat back down. "Your first kiss?"  
  
"Well, like 'that' anyways."  
  
"Trust me a little more now?"  
  
"Well, maybe, but only a little."  
  
  
  
(Meanwhile, at the Nights pinball area)  
  
  
  
Shadow looked at the pinball area, somewhat amazed by it.  
  
"So this is what Sonic got to try." Shadow said to himself.  
  
"Want to try it?" asked Sr. Maria. "I think you have a chance at beating his high score."  
  
"Y-you really think so?"  
  
"Definitely."  
  
"Shadow is the best!" beamed Lil Maria. "Beat Sonics high score!"  
  
The black hedgehog looked at the high score. It read 500,000 points. The name next to it was Sonics. He frowned at the name, and then grinned.  
  
"I can beat it. If he was able to score 'that' many points, then an ultimate life form can 'double' that amount!"  
  
"Yay!" exclaimed lil Maria.  
  
"Shadow registered, and went inside. From the outside, both Maria's were watching him through a large television screen. From the inside, Shadow could see all of the Nights backgrounds. He rolled up into a ball, and the machine pushed him into the pinball game.  
  
During the game, he kept getting matches of every character that gave high points. This was his first time playing, but he seemed to be an expert on it. He was already on 35,000 points. Much time passed, and he finally gained entrance to the secret part of the Nights pinball stage. After a while of being in it, he was already racking up points. After yet another long while, he accumulated 499,856 points.  
  
However, he was now falling out of that special area, and was now back at the regular area. Unfortunately, he fell at the wrong angle, and was about to fall out of the game.  
  
"(I can't lose yet)!" He exclaimed to himself. "(Good thing this place is full of flashy lights)." He then used chaos control, and he was back in place again. When he finally got bored and tired of playing, he let himself fall out of the game. He had ranked a total of 812,002 points. He walked back to the Marias, feeling very dizzy as well.  
  
"How can Sonic do this without getting dizzy?"  
  
"Yay! You did it! You're the highest scorer of this game!" exclaimed lil Maria in delight.  
  
"Congratulations." Said Sr. Maria.  
  
"I think I need to rest for a while." Said Shadow as he fell on a bench. "I think I'll go home. It was nice hanging out with you two."  
  
"No, thank 'you'." Said Sr. Maria. "Because of you, my daughter has had more fun now than she's ever done alone. Tell me, do you baby-sit?"  
  
"No." he answered flatly.  
  
"Well, here's our number. Call us if you ever change your mind." She said as she handed him the number. "Let's go, Maria."  
  
"Bye, Shadow." Said lil Maria.  
  
The two left. When they were out of his sight, he used chaos control, and was instantly back in his apartment. He went to his bed, and fell on it.  
  
"Helping people while breaking your rivals' record can be a lot of work."  
  
  
  
(Meanwhile, at Eggmans 'secret' base)  
  
  
  
The evil scientist was checking on a few of the profiles. Then he closed the files.  
  
"Let's just see what my nemesis is up to." He said as he turned the projection on. He saw Sonic, Amy, and Tails, asleep on the boat. "Nothing strange here." He changed the camera to Tail's boat. All he saw was nothing. "Why is this boat empty?"  
  
"Because no one is in it." Said Omochao.  
  
Eggman quickly turned to see that Omochao was in his base again. "How do you do that?!"  
  
Omochao just shrugged.  
  
"Well, what do you want?"  
  
"I'm here to help you."  
  
"Then help me by going away!"  
  
"Look to where Knuckles and Rouge are."  
  
He did so, only to find something that would repulse him. He quickly turned it off, then turned to Omochao.  
  
"You stupid robot! If I wanted to see two animals make out, I would've watched the Discovery channel!"  
  
"April fools!"  
  
"It's May!"  
  
"Oops."  
  
He was about to dismantle it, when he just realized something. He quickly turned the projector on, and saw that Rouge had a chaos emerald. He turned the monitor back off and grinned evilly.  
  
"Perhaps this was helpful advice after all."  
  
"You're welcome."  
  
"Let me ask you a question. Do you help just anybody, or just specific people?"  
  
"Just you, Tails, Rouge, Knuckles, Sonic, Shadow, Amy, Big, and any other person that Sega would want me to help."  
  
The scientist was a little confused at the last statement, but just shrugged it off. He had given up on trying to figure out Omochao a long time ago. He pushed a button, which catapulted Omochao out of the lab.  
  
"Well, I better get some rest. I have a big day tomorrow."  
  
So he changed his clothes, went to his bedroom, turned on the extra security, and went to sleep.  
  
  
  
End of chapter 3.  
  
  
  
Authors note: Well, that's it for "this" chapter. Thank you all once again for the reviews. It's what keeps me writing this. Also, sorry for taking so long. For those of you who might not see this on ff.net, my email address is rubynall@hotmail.com 


	4. ch4

Check chapter 1 for the disclaimer.  
  
I don't really have much to say, except, thank you all for the reviews, and, on with the fic. On a final note, the "" signals indicate singing.  
  
  
  
Sonic Tales Chapter 4  
  
  
  
After a long 35 minutes, the ride ended. Sonic was awakened by the slight shaking, and quickly woke up Amy and Tails before anyone could see them. The three got off the ride, and waited for the others. One minute later, Rouge and Knuckles came out. Rouge had a grin, and Knuckles had somewhat of a blissful look in his eyes.  
  
Sonic noticed this and grinned. "Hey Knux. I see 'something' went on, if ya know what I mean."  
  
The echidna quickly responded. "I-I don't know what you're talking about. All we did was talk."  
  
"And then some." Added Rouge. "We didn't go past second base, though."  
  
"Couldn't do it, eh Knuckles?" Asked Sonic.  
  
"It's just way too soon." he answered. "By the way, how did 'your' little ride with Amy go?"  
  
"Nothing much."  
  
"Then why does Amy look so happy?"  
  
"She's always like th-  
  
Amy quickly interrupted him. "We're going out!"  
  
Both Knuckles and Tails nearly bust a gut laughing. Rouge just grinned.  
  
"Is that true, Sonic?" asked Tails.  
  
"Yes," Sonic answered, "but only for a week! We made a bet. After that, she'll be out of my life forever."  
  
Knuckles raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure that's wise, Amy? Chances are that he'll win this bet."  
  
"I know," Amy said, "but it's worth a try."  
  
Before anyone could say anything else, a dark chao flew above them.  
  
"Only one more hour before this park closes." It said.  
  
"But it shouldn't close for six more hours." Rouge complained. "Why is it closing so early?"  
  
"Come back here tomorrow to find out." It answered. "And if your patience is too small for that, read this flyer." The dark chao then handed the bat a flyer, then flew off.  
  
Rouge read the flyer aloud. "Ahem! Come to Twinkle Park tomorrow to celebrate a new renter's generosity. Games will be held, prizes will be awarded, and there will be lots of contests. To make it more special, all of the staff gets the day off, and chaos will be substituting for the employees just for today. And if that's not enough, any type of heroes that saved the world gets in free. So come to Twinkle Park tomorrow, and have a blast."  
  
"That was odd." Tails inquired. "This renter person must be rich or something."  
  
"Hmm, sounds fishy." Sonic said aloud. "We'll go, but everyone, keep your eyes peeled."  
  
"I know we'll have lots of fun, Sonic." Amy beamed. "Just you see!"  
  
"I had plans anyways." Said Rouge. "(I have checks to write and bills to pay)."  
  
So the group left the park, and went to their homes.  
  
  
  
(A little later: Rouge's apartment)  
  
  
  
After mailing in all of the checks that were written to the bills she needed to pay, Rouge relaxed, and sat down to watch some T.V. As she was watching, her conscience was sinking in. She was feeling kind of guilty about stealing the master emerald and then selling it to Eggman, who no doubt had evil intentions for it. She flipped through some more channels to find something that might rid her of her guilt. Unfortunately, nothing good was on, except for a music channel, which wasn't helping since a rap song was on at the time.  
  
She just decided to turn off the television, and go to bed. However, the guilt didn't leave her. She was now thinking about Knuckles. About how she led him on, and how he responded. She didn't like feeling this way, especially for someone other than herself. And deep down inside, although she wouldn't admit it aloud, she actually felt something for the echidna. What else would explain these feelings she was having? After a couple of hours, she finally gave in to her conscience, and decided to go ahead and steal back the master emerald.  
  
The thought of doing this put her mind at ease, and she was able to go to sleep.  
  
  
  
(Meanwhile: At Angel Island)  
  
  
  
Knuckles was back to his usual duties of guarding the master emerald, or what he thought was the master emerald. As he was looking at the stars, he was thinking about Rouge. He wondered if he could trust her, and if he could, what might that mean between them? And what were these feelings he was having? Could he actually have certain feelings for his rival? What if she was just using him to get to the master emerald? And why was he asking all these questions?  
  
His thoughts were cut short by something coming in his direction. He looked closer, and saw that it was Omochao. The little robot landed right next to him.  
  
"Hi. I'm Omochao. I'm here to help you."  
  
"Look, I already know who you are, so could you just get to the point?"  
  
"Cubic zirconium is a crafty rock."  
  
"What? What is that supposed to mean?"  
  
"The bats are in the belfry."  
  
"What belfry?"  
  
"I was helpful, bye-bye!" Then it flew off.  
  
"(Annoying little robot)!" thought Knuckles. "(Just what does he mean by cubic zirconium being a crafty rock, and bats being in belfries)?" He pondered the thought for a while. After a few minutes, he realized something that Omochao once said to Sonic, who was about to throw it off a cliff. "I remember it saying, 'I'm not a weapon to be thrown at bad guys. I provide hints to help you.' I wonder what it meant by that?"  
  
After a few 'more' minutes of thinking, he finally came to a conclusion, but then grimaced at the thought. Hoping that he was wrong, he approached the master emerald. He looked at it very closely, and tapped it a few times. When it made a different sound from before, he realized what had happened.  
  
"I knew it!" he exclaimed. "Somehow, Rouge must've found a way to get here without anyone noticing. She took the master emerald, replaced it for a substitute, and now has it! And to think I was about to trust her! First thing in the morning, I'm retrieving 'my' emerald!"  
  
Now furious, the echidna had some trouble going to sleep, but eventually succeeded in doing so.  
  
  
  
(Morning: Sonic and Tail's home)  
  
  
  
It was 8 in the morning, and Tails was cooking some breakfast. The smell instantly awoke Sonic. In a flash, he was already at the table.  
  
"So what's for breakfast?" he asked eagerly.  
  
"We're kind of low on money," Tails answered, "so we could only afford to get pancake mix."  
  
"Works for me."  
  
"That reminds me of something weird."  
  
"And what would that be?"  
  
"Well, neither of us have jobs, so how is it that we can afford this place? I know that we sell the rings we collect, but how is it enough?"  
  
"I'm not sure. Maybe it has to do with those mysterious checks we get in the mail."  
  
"Yeah, you're right! I forgot about those!"  
  
"That answers one question, but who do you think sends them?"  
  
"Well, Omochao once noted something about Sega, but I couldn't comprehend on the subject he was insinuating."  
  
"Um, Tails? In a language we all can understand?"  
  
"In other words, I had no idea what he was talking about."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Anyways, are you ready for your date with Amy?"  
  
Sonics eyes narrowed. "It's not a date, not a real one anyways."  
  
"Uh-huh, sure. Whatever you say."  
  
  
  
(Meanwhile: Some random place)  
  
  
  
Rouge was flying around, looking for Eggmans secret base. For some strange reason, her transmitter wasn't working. After a long while, she finally found it. Of course, it wouldn't be that hard to spot an underground base with symbols of Eggman on them. She flew close to it, and then hid behind a rock.  
  
Noticing that the security was at its maximum level, she threw some mud at the security cameras, then flew towards the top of the roof. She stopped when she noticed the laser lights surrounding it.  
  
"(The docs really gone all out, hasn't he)." She thought. "(Breaking in isn't going to be as easy as I thought)."  
  
Being very careful, and thanks to her agility, she was able to make it past the lasers, and inside the base, and then hovered to safety around the ceiling. She didn't want to make a scene, so she quietly flew way above the many robots that were guarding the area. When she reached a door leading to another room, she pulled out a spark grenade (think Metal Gear Solid), pulled the pin, and dropped it in the middle of the robot crowds. When the grenade went off, the whole room resembled a snowy evening, with white shards all over the room.  
  
The robots and the cameras were temporarily shut down. Rouge quickly flew into the next room, and then threw another spark grenade in there, also temporarily shutting down the robots in 'that' room. Much to her surprise, the master emerald was in the next room she was about to enter, encased inside a machine that somewhat resembled a furnace, except it reached all the way to the ceiling. She quickly entered it while readying another spark grenade. However, no robots or lasers were there, only two security cameras, which she quickly shot some spray paint on. Without thinking, she reached for the master emerald. However, her hand went right through it.  
  
"Oh no, a trap!" she exclaimed. Before she could run, the door locked itself, and sleeping gas poured in from the vents. Rouge tried to cover her nose, but it was too late, and she lost consciousness. Evil laughter could be heard from the speakers.  
  
Wearing a gas mask, Eggman entered the room. He approached the unconscious bat, looked for the chaos emerald, and found it, of course. He laughed again.  
  
"You heroes are so predictable!" he gloated. "I knew you would try to take back the master emerald. As I've stated previously, no one, and I mean NO ONE, is going to stand in my way! Now that I have what I want, I can't have you interfering and telling that hedgehog of my schemes. I shall put you to good use."  
  
He then picked her up, and brought her to another room. This one had a lot of smaller incubator like machines in them. He threw her inside of one, closed the door, and activated it.  
  
"I hope you sleep well. In exactly 24 hours, you will become a robot, and not just any robot. You will become an android that is 100% obedient and efficient. I 'do' thank you for bringing the chaos emerald to me. One down and six more to go! I will rule this world with my master plan!" Then he laughed some more.  
  
"My schemes are perfect in every way, and soon to be my uprising, and Sonics demise!" He laughed a bit more, and then went to his main quarters. When he reached it, he entered his eggwalker, boarded the eggmobile, and flew it out of his base. He was looking at the files that he copied.  
  
"It was expensive, but that theme park idea should be enough to distract that hedgehog long enough for me to collect the remaining emeralds. Well, enough talk. Time to put my search into action!" Then he continued his search.  
  
  
  
(Meanwhile: Station Square)  
  
  
  
Knuckles was busy searching Station Square for Rouge. He checked her apartment, but she wasn't there. After a while of searching, he spotted Big, who was fishing at the beach with his froggy. He flew down right next to him.  
  
"Um, excuse me." Knuckles started. "Have you seen a white bat around?"  
  
Big gave no response.  
  
"Hello? Are you awake?"  
  
Still no response.  
  
"This is getting me nowhere! I need to ask someone whose mind won't shut down."  
  
Just then, Omochao flew right next to him.  
  
"Did you know that Big's reaction nerves rival that of a brontosaurus?"  
  
"I guess that wouldn't surprise me."  
  
Finally, Big responded. "Duhh, yeah. I seen pretty white bat."  
  
"Told you." Said Omochao.  
  
"Good." Said Knuckles. "Now, where is she?"  
  
No response was given.  
  
The echidna shook his head and turned to Omochao. "Do 'you' know where she would be?"  
  
Omochao just shrugged its shoulders.  
  
"How is it that you can know what's going on all the time, but not know the location to someone?"  
  
Omochao just shrugged its shoulders.  
  
"Is there 'anything' you can tell me?!"  
  
"The jewel has been shifted from one hand to another."  
  
"And what does that mean?"  
  
"Bye-bye." Then he flew off.  
  
"He was very little help."  
  
Big finally responded. "I seen pretty bat girl. She just came here this morning."  
  
"Oh, I see you're back with us. Well, where is she?"  
  
"Hmm, it so long ago..Let me remember.....duhh.." Then his mind spaced out again.  
  
Frustrated, Knuckles sat down. He was thinking about what Omochao was talking about, and why did the one who last saw her have to be Big?  
  
"It's too bad parables aren't my forte. This is something Sonic and Tails would know. I think I'll go find them. Knowing Sonic, that won't be easy. I'll just have to wait at Twinkle Park."  
  
He got up, and flew there. After ten minutes, Big finally responded.  
  
"Duh, I know! Pretty bat girl said that she go to fat guys fortress!" Then he looked around. "Froggy? Froggy? Where is Froggy?" He got up and proceeded to search for his froggy.  
  
  
  
(Later: Twinkle Park)  
  
  
  
We could see a blur of blue, followed by a blur of orange heading to Twinkle Park. When they stopped, Sonic looked around. After a couple of minutes, he responded.  
  
"Well, it looks like Amy isn't coming. I guess we could go home."  
  
Before he could think another thought, a pink automobile swerved in front of him. It stopped right next to him. The door opened, and from it exited a pink hedgehog with a red dress. Sonic sighed in grief. Of course it was Amy, only one minute late.  
  
"Sorry I'm late, Sonic." She said. "My car ran out of gas, and I needed to refill it."  
  
"Well, let's get this over with." Sonic said while smiling a little.  
  
Tails pretended not to see that, and spoke up. "What kind of games do you think there are?"  
  
"Not sure." Answered Sonic. "Only one way to find out. Let's go."  
  
Taking Sonics arm into hers, Amy entered the park with them.  
  
  
  
(Outside of Shadows apartment)  
  
  
  
Shadow was outside, increasing his speed by doing sprints to the store and back. He continued to do this until someone called out to him. He looked up, and saw Knuckles. He stopped running, and waited for the echidna to land. When he finally did, Shadow approached him.  
  
"Well, what is it?" he asked a bit impatiently.  
  
"I was wondering, have you seen Rouge anywhere?" the echidna asked. "She stole my master emerald, and I'm trying to get it back."  
  
"Oh really. I never would've figured 'that' out."  
  
"Now is not the time for sarcasm! My emerald is gone!"  
  
"It's your own fault for trusting her."  
  
"Have you seen her or not?"  
  
"Not since yesterday. Why don't you try asking Sonic? That is, unless he's hiding from Amy."  
  
"That's where I was headed."  
  
Just then, Omochao entered the scene.  
  
"Did you know that Sonic and Amy are going out for a week?"  
  
Shadow grinned. "Now 'this,' I gotta check out!"  
  
"Oh." Replied Knuckles. "They have a bet going on. I'll fill you in on the way."  
  
"Why don't you fill me in right now? I would end up there faster than you anyways."  
  
So Knuckles told Shadow all about the bet. This made Shadow laugh.  
  
"I don't know who is more foolish! Amy for making that bet, or Sonic for agreeing to it!"  
  
"Say what you will." Said Knuckles. "All I care about is getting my emerald back. I'll meet you there." Then he flew off.  
  
"Would you like me to help you?" asked Omochao.  
  
"Yeah, sure. See that garbage can?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Inspect it for me!"  
  
"Okay." Then it flew over to the garbage can, and just stared at it.  
  
Shadow used chaos control, and was at Twinkle Park. He looked at his watch. It was 10 in the morning, but it was night at the park. He wondered why this place never received daylight, but shrugged it off, and went inside.  
  
It took him a while, but he finally found Amy and Sonic. They were in line for something. He looked at the sign that read "Karaoke." He ran up to them, but was stopped by a dark chao that was posing as a guard.  
  
"No line cutting!" said the dark chao.  
  
"I'm not even in line!"  
  
"Look mac, if you wanna speak to the singers, then you gotta wait until 'after' it's done! The seats are in that direction. Now git! I don't want to have to repeat myself! I already had to deal with a bratty fox boy!"  
  
"Fine, fine. I'll go. I don't feel like pounding your brains in."  
  
He walked to the seats. He kept searching until he found the seat the Tails was sitting in. However, there was already someone in it. He kept pestering Tails about his, well, tails. He kept asking annoying questions like, 'why do you have two tails', 'were you a freak or somethin' and 'how is it that you can talk.'  
  
The black hedgehog simply walked up to the guy, threw him across the isle, and sat down. The guy was dazed.  
  
"Sorry if this seat is taken, but it's mine now."  
  
"Thanks, Shadow." Said Tails. "That guy was really annoying."  
  
"Yeah yeah, whatever. Why are Sonic and Amy in line for karaoke?"  
  
"It's something that Amy wanted him to do. Personally, I'd never do it, no matter what."  
  
"Yeah, karaoke sucks."  
  
"I don't know about that. Sometimes you can find a good singer, but that's only 20% of the time."  
  
"Well, at least I'll get to see Sonic make a fool of himself." He then took out a camcorder.  
  
"Um, Shadow? Where did you get that?"  
  
He looked at the still dazed guy. "I borrowed it."  
  
"Isn't that stealing?"  
  
"Only if I don't return it."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Now be quiet. It's starting."  
  
So the two watched many people sing to various tunes. There were a couple of good ones, but most of them were really awful. After some several grueling minutes, Amy was up.  
  
"Time to cover my ears." Said Shadow.  
  
"If she sings like she cooks, we're in trouble." Added Tails.  
  
Amy got up on the stage. She adjusted the mike to reach her size, and then she spoke.  
  
"Um, testing, testing, one two three? Testing, testing, one two three? Um, hello everyone! Rather than sing someone else's song, I'm going to sing one of my own. I hope you all like it." Then she cued the disk jockey to start.  
  
"This won't end well." Sonic said to himself as he was watching from the sides.  
  
Amy started to sing "My Sweet Passion."  
  
"I got out my map and chose a place I wanted to go to  
  
...Packed up my stuff, set out for adventure...  
  
I know that your lucky color is that cool shade of blue  
  
...Won't mind painting myself blue for you..."  
  
Shadow uncovered his ears. "Hey, she's not so bad."  
  
"Yeah, she's actually pretty good." Tails added.  
  
"I do understand the feelings of a Persian Cat ...But the Sphinx looked so cute I had to shave it... He reminds me of parsley when he's standing there all alone ...Makes me wanna be his specialite..."  
  
"I don't know what Persian cats have to do with a Sphinx," Sonic said to himself, "but at least her singing is pretty good."  
  
"Sweet sweet you're so sweet - So many things I want  
  
Sweet sweet you're so sweet - I wanna be a wonderful girl  
  
Sweet sweet you're so sweet - I'm not simple-minded  
  
Sweet sweet you're so sweet - And I won't be a pearl  
  
You probably need me just as much as I need you"  
  
  
  
After the song was over, everyone cheered, including Sonic. When he heard his name being called, he gulped, but then gave his 'cool' look, and approached the stage. Shadow readied the video camera, grinning evilly. Sonic introduced his song, and began to sing "It Doesn't Matter."  
  
"Well, I don't show off, don't criticize,  
  
I'm just livin' by my own feelings.  
  
And I won't give in, won't compromise,  
  
Coz I only have a steadfast heart of gold..."  
  
Shadow rolled his eyes at the last statement.  
  
  
  
"I don't know why. I can't leave though it might be tough,  
  
But I ain't out of control, just livin' by my word.  
  
Don't ask me why, I don't need a reason.  
  
I got my way. My own way!!!"  
  
Amy cheered Sonic on.  
  
"It doesn't matter now what happens. I will never give up the fight!!! Long as the voice inside drives me to run and fight, It doesn't matter who is wrong and who is right!"  
  
When Sonics song was over, everyone cheered wildly, except for Shadow, who was a bit upset that the crowd didn't mind his somewhat off-key voice, but was cheered up by the fact that he can now make fun of his singing voice whenever he wanted. He put the camcorder away. Just as he was about to stand up, he saw Knuckles land on the center stage.  
  
"Listen everyone!" he exclaimed. "I have a question for Sonic! Where is he?"  
  
"We have a special entry!" shouted the DJ, who was a light chao, not to mention a Knuckles fan.  
  
The crowd cheered wildly, all while chanting his name. The echidna had a bewildered look on his face, but just shrugged his shoulders.  
  
"Well, if you guys really want a song, I guess I could. I have to make it short, since I'm in kind of a hurry."  
  
The crowd cheered again.  
  
"I wonder why Knux is so popular?" asked Sonic.  
  
"Probably because people think he's cool." Answered Amy. "Not that you're not cool or anything. I guess people prefer rappers over rockers, or something like that."  
  
So they took their seats, and watched the echidna as he introduced his song titled "Kick the Rock."  
  
"This is Knuckles, and I'm back!  
  
I been away for a while, but I'm back to kick some butt at Wild Canyon!  
  
I shall find all the lost pieces of the Master Emerald here.  
  
I'm gonna get those fools.  
  
They wanna play with my Emeralds?!  
  
They playing with the wrong guy!"  
  
"Looks like 'someone's' a little angry." Whispered Sonic.  
  
"Rouge stole his master emerald." Shadow answered.  
  
"Figures. He shouldn't have trusted her, though."  
  
"That's the same thing 'I' said."  
  
  
  
"Echidna, that's what I'm representing,  
  
Never seen a mic-hog spit like a menace.  
  
Wild Canyon fun? I gotta chase a bat, huh,  
  
Yeah, Rouge, she's sexy and smooth!  
  
A double cross spot-thief, that's out for my jewels,  
  
I'm feelin' her in mysterious ways.  
  
That's why I stay on point like every single day,  
  
I gotta protect this place, I do it for my race, uh, uh."  
  
"Well 'someone's' having mixed feelings here." Whispered Shadow.  
  
"I'll have to agree with you on that one." Answered Sonic.  
  
"Okay, guys. That's enough." Tails whispered back.  
  
"Ain't nobody gonna come here and eat my plate, no!  
  
Yo what happened, my Emeralds' gone!  
  
Somebody gonna get their's quick, my word sworn,  
  
Who could'a did this, that stitch named Rouge!  
  
When I catch her, I'm gonna get her with these tools,  
  
There you are, come here you little thief!  
  
Think you gon' fly and get away quick? Uh, uh!  
  
Give up the Emeralds or die, I don't love you!"  
  
"I don't mean to be rude or anything, but it looks like Knuckles has some major issues over that emerald being stolen." Sonic said.  
  
"Good thing I got it on tape." Said Shadow as he grinned evilly. "Along with 'you' singing."  
  
"You better be glad I don't mind that."  
  
"Oh, we'll see about that."  
  
"Poor Knuckles." Said Amy. "I feel so sorry for him. I hope they make up."  
  
"I guess this is why he wanted to find us." Inquired Tails.  
  
When the song was over, everyone cheered. Knuckles gave a bow, and then flew towards Sonic. When he landed, he spoke.  
  
"I assume none of you has seen Rouge either."  
  
Everyone shook their heads.  
  
"Sonic, I need your help solving the hint Omochao gave me. It said that the jewel has been shifted from one hand to another. What does that mean?"  
  
But before any of them could think about it, the announcer shouted the next introduction. Everyone was surprised that the name that was called was Omochao, and a group of normal chaos. Everyone turned to hear them sing "e.g.g.m.a.n."  
  
Omochao started singing.  
  
"The story begins with who's gonna win  
  
Knowing the danger that lies within  
  
Aboard the ARK, a genius at heart  
  
Wanting to unlock the mysteries of life"  
  
The group of chaos were singing as chorus.  
  
"I am the Eggman, that's what I am  
  
I am the Eggman, I got the master plan.  
  
I am the Eggman, that's what I am,  
  
I am the Eggman, I got the master plan."  
  
Then it dawned on the echidna.  
  
"That's it! She must have sold it to Dr. Eggman!"  
  
Sonic narrowed his eyes. "Gee, I could've told you that."  
  
"I'm plotting my schemes,  
  
Wherever I go,  
  
They're perfect in every way.  
  
I'd love to destroy,  
  
The blue one you know,  
  
He's an obstacle who always gets in my way."  
  
"You know," Sonic started, "I think I'll join you, Knuckes. It's been a while since I've kicked some eggbutt."  
  
"I'll go too." Said Tails.  
  
"So will I." Said Amy.  
  
"I don't think so." Sonic told her. "You'll only get in the way, again. Shadow, you watch her."  
  
"Give me a good reason why I should?" he asked irritably.  
  
"Amy told me about the Marias you were hanging out with the other day. Guess what? The mother is going to be singing next. We saw her standing in the lines."  
  
"On second thought, I guess I could watch her for a 'little' while. Just hurry up! I'm not a babysitter!"  
  
"But I wanna go!" whined Amy.  
  
"Sonics right." Said Knuckles. "If Eggmans really involved, then we need to get that emerald back quickly. C'mon Sonic! Let's go!"  
  
"To my house!" exclaimed Tails. "I have some equipment that'll make searching him out much easier."  
  
So the three of them rushed off to Sonic and Tails' home. Amy tried to follow them, but Shadow grabbed her wrist.  
  
"I am the enemy, I will succeed  
  
My mission, yeah, I must complete  
  
My name is Eggman, don't forget my name  
  
If you ask me again I'll tell you the same"  
  
"You stay here. The song is almost over." Said Shadow.  
  
When the song had ended, the crowd cheered. Finally, Sr. Maria was introduced. She first gave a small speech.  
  
"Hello everyone." She said. "I'd like to dedicate this song to a friend I met recently. Well, here goes."  
  
She started to sing "Throw it all away."  
  
"Everybody tries to be straight,  
  
But things are still unchanged,  
  
It's useless to resist,  
  
Their effort will be wasted.  
  
Head straight for your goal by any means,  
  
There is a door that you've never opened,  
  
There is a window with a view you have never seen,  
  
Get there, no matter how long it takes."  
  
"That songs kinda-"Amy started to say, but was shushed by Shadow.  
  
"Oh dark, the darkness that dozes in the dusk,  
  
Throw it all away.  
  
No-one can break you, nobody can tear you,  
  
You live an endless life forever.  
  
Oh dark, the darkness that dozes in the dusk,  
  
Throw it all away.  
  
You see a light wherever you go,  
  
You have to face it again and again."  
  
When the song ended, people cheered, especially Shadow. Amy couldn't understand what was so exciting about it. She wished that she was with Sonic, not having to stay here with someone as gloomy as Shadow.  
  
The light chao announced the winner of the Karaoke contest.  
  
"And the winner is, Omochao and his group!"  
  
Everyone was surprised as to how "they" could win, but cheered on anyways.  
  
"And second place goes to, Amy!"  
  
Everyone cheered, and Amy ran to the center stage to accept her prize, dragging Shadow along with her.  
  
  
  
End of chapter 4  
  
Well, I hope you liked it. Did you notice the characters songs? I figured it would be nice to see some of the characters singing their own songs. What did you think? I thank you all for the reviews. Remember, review me if you can.  
  
Once again, my email address is rubynall@hotmail.com 


	5. ch5

Check for the disclaimer in chapter 1.  
  
  
  
Sonic Tales Chapter 5  
  
  
  
Let's go back in time a bit, shall we? During the whole time Sonic and the group were going to Twinkle Park and such, Eggman was busy collecting the chaos emeralds. Here is what happened during that time, until we reach the present. Here we see Eggman has just landed in a village. The people rushed out to witness the arrival of this stranger. The minute they saw who it was, they quickly ran to their homes, afraid of what might happen next.  
  
"Greetings, everyone!" Eggman shouted so that everyone will hear. "I'm only here on a business trip! Hand over the chaos emerald, and I'll depart quietly! Otherwise, there will be quite a fiasco!"  
  
The village chief courageously exited his hiding place, and approached the mad scientist. He was a Walrus, dressed in Mayan chief style clothing, and carrying a large staff in his hand.  
  
"Hello there." He said. "I am the chief of this village. We are but a peaceful tribe, and wish for no quarrel. We do not know of this chaos emerald that you speak of."  
  
"Don't lie to me! My radar shows the exact coordinates! Now, hand it over!"  
  
"What do you plan to do with it?"  
  
"Take over the world, of course."  
  
"Then I cannot let you have it!"  
  
"Perhaps an example is necessary." Said Eggman as he looked around the village. "Let's see..." He finally found a target. From the looks of it, the building resembled something of great importance. "Ah, a temple, no doubt."  
  
"Wait! Don't do this!" The chief pleaded.  
  
"Then hand over the chaos emerald!"  
  
"I can't!"  
  
The scientist wasted no time. He quickly fired his cannon at the temple, completely destroying it. He then turned back to the chief. "I hope I made myself clear."  
  
"I will never give it to you!"  
  
"Perhaps another example is needed." He looked around for another building of possible importance. He grinned evilly when he noticed what looked like a hospital. All the chief could do was watch in horror as he completely destroyed 'that' building as well.  
  
"Please! Stop doing this!"  
  
But Eggman ignored him as he searched for yet another building to destroy. He couldn't find any, so he just started shooting random buildings. This caused the villagers to run out of their hiding places in a state of panic. When there wasn't much left to destroy, he called some of his robot minions.  
  
"Capture every villager that you see!"  
  
"Please! I'm begging you! Stop this right now!"  
  
"You already know what will make me stop."  
  
So the robots captured all of the villagers, including the village chief.  
  
"Give up?"  
  
"Never!"  
  
"(Hmm. This chief has a very strong will. What could possibly make him crack)?"  
  
Just as he finished his thought, Omochao appeared.  
  
"Interrogations aren't the only way to spill the beans. Try something that he really likes."  
  
"Like what?" Eggman asked. "I already captured everyone in the village. What more could he possibly have?"  
  
"Did you know that the chief is a materialistic person?"  
  
"But I destroyed everything!"  
  
"Bye-bye!" then Omochao flew off.  
  
"What could that robot possibly mean?" Eggman said to himself, all the while looking at the destruction he caused. As he was searching, he caught glimpse of two buildings that he didn't destroy. One was a sacred fountain. The other was the chiefs' home. Then he got an idea.  
  
He aimed the laser cannon at the fountain. He looked at the chief, who still shown no resistance. He then pointed it at the house. That was when the chief started speaking.  
  
"Okay-okay! You win! Just don't destroy my house!"  
  
"Then get me the chaos emerald."  
  
So he let the chief go, who quickly ran inside his house. Seconds later, he ran back, carrying the chaos emerald. Eggman took the emerald, and then the robot captured him again.  
  
"But I gave you the emerald!" exclaimed the chief.  
  
"And I thank you for it. However, I cannot let you go and warn that hedgehog of my presence just yet." Then he turned to the other robots. "Take them back to my base! Place them in the robotization pods!"  
  
The robots quickly did as they were told. When they were gone, Eggman looked back at the chiefs' house, grinned evilly, and destroyed it anyways. Then he mounted his eggmobile, and went towards the next destination of the next chaos emerald.  
  
Some time later, he reached an active volcano. He looked at the signal, and, sure enough, it was going off. Pondering the situation for a while, he flew the eggmobile over the mouth of the volcano. Peering down inside, he could clearly see the chaos emerald. So he used the crane that was built in the eggmobile, used it to grab the emerald, and then flew away from it.  
  
"Three down, four to go." The evil scientist was about to depart, but then grinned evilly as he looked at the volcano. Then he flew back to its mouth, dropped an explosive inside, and quickly flew a long distance from it. The explosion caused the volcano to act up, and then erupt, spilling magma all over the small island. Eggman cackled a typical villain laugh. It was cut short, however, by a signal of a different type. He looked at what it was, and scowled.  
  
"No! Someone is heading to my base at a very rapid acceleration! It could only be that hedgehog! But how did he find out?! He mustn't find out anything else! I have to reach the base before 'he' does!" Then he pulled out a remote from his belt. "This should buy me some time to get inside my base and hide the evidence. I didn't want to have to attack until absolutely necessary, but I suppose the time came sooner, rather than later." Then he pushed a few of the buttons. "Let's see that hedgehog handle 'this' playmate!" Eggman then quickly sped his eggwalker to his base as fast as possible.  
  
  
  
[Back to the present: A few miles from Eggmans 'secret' base]  
  
  
  
Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles were quickly racing to Eggmans 'secret' base.  
  
"We're almost there." Said Sonic.  
  
"I am going to have a serious yelling at a certain bat when I get there!" fumed Knuckles.  
  
"I thought we were going after Eggbutt." Said Sonic.  
  
"Uh, yeah. Him too."  
  
Sonic just rolled his eyes. Tails spoke up.  
  
"Um, Sonic? Am I the only one who thinks that this is too easy?"  
  
"Well, now that you mention it, it 'does' seem kind of easy."  
  
"Easy is good." Said Knuckles.  
  
"More like disappointing." Answered Sonic. "I hope I get to see just a 'little' bit of action."  
  
"Be careful what you wish for, Sonic." Said Tails.  
  
No sooner had he said that, a giant, dark gray robot emerged from the ground, blocking the path of our heroes. It was fifty feet tall, had long arms, wheels for legs, missiles for fingers, a shielded body that looked like it could store a lot of stuff, a head that was shaped like a bucket, and visor-like eyes that glowed red. It looked at Sonic and the crew, analyzed them, and then prepared for attack.  
  
"Looks like I spoke too soon." Said Sonic.  
  
"Thanks a lot." Said Knuckles sarcastically.  
  
[E.G.G. D.E.M.O.L.I.T.I.O.N.E.R.]  
  
"If anyone has any ideas, I'm all ears." Said Knuckles.  
  
"What ideas?" asked Sonic impatiently. "Just attack it!"  
  
As soon as he said that, he spin dashed it. Just as he was about to hit it, spikes emerged from its entire body. Sonic was hit on impact, losing rings. While he was gathering them, Knuckles distracted it by flying around its head while searching for a weak spot. Tails was scanning the robot for any possible weaknesses. Using the analyzed data that it collected, the robot swatted the echidna at the right moment, causing 'him' to lose his rings. It was now Sonics turn to distract the robot. He climbed it, and then jumped on its head.  
  
"Sonic Wind!" he shouted.  
  
However, it had no effect. Just as he was about to be swatted, Knuckles quickly scooped him up, and flew out of its range.  
  
"Thanks, Knuckles." Said Sonic.  
  
"No problem." He answered.  
  
"Guys!" Tails shouted. "Look out!"  
  
They looked back at the robot, which had already fired missiles at them. The two dodged them just in time. As they were dodging more missiles, Tails beamed in delight when he pinpointed a weakness.  
  
"I found a weak point!" He said excitedly. "All we have to do is get him to open his mouth, and fire a rail cannon at us! Then we attack the open spot just as he is slowly closing his mouth!"  
  
"Brilliant, Tails!" said Sonic excitedly.  
  
"But how do we get him to do 'that'?" asked Knuckles.  
  
Tails laughed a bit nervously. "Hehe, I'm still trying to figure that out."  
  
The two would've face-faulted if they weren't too busy dodging missiles and mini lasers.  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: At Twinkle Park]  
  
  
  
Sometime after accepting the award and such, Amy, Shadow, and the two Marias were by the food court talking. Actually, Amy was doing most of the talking. Sr. Maria was politely listening to her, while lil Maria fell asleep. Shadow wanted to shut her up, but resisted in doing so. Amy was babbling about her life, her friends lives, how Sonic saved the world countless times, and how Shadow came to be. When she was done speaking, Shadow spoke up.  
  
"Well, now that you're done telling her all of everyone's business, I'd like to do something that won't bore me to death."  
  
"Like what?" asked Amy.  
  
"Well, if it were up to 'me,' I would go and leave you here. However, since I already told Sonic that I would baby-sit you, I'm not really sure."  
  
"Don't say it like that." Said Amy. "I'm very capable of taking care of myself."  
  
Shadow just rolled his eyes. Sr. Maria spoke up.  
  
"How about we go to the chao races?"  
  
Shadow brightened up. "That's a pretty good idea. Amy, you pay for the gambling."  
  
"But I don't gamble." Said Amy.  
  
"You do now." Answered Shadow. "Besides, Sonic does it."  
  
"Really? In that case, I guess I could try a couple of times."  
  
So the group went to the chao races.  
  
  
  
[Back to the battle]  
  
  
  
"You know, the thing seems very reluctant about wanting to fire that rail cannon of his." Inquired Sonic.  
  
"No matter how many times we taunted it, it still won't fire." Said Knuckles. "Find anything yet, Tails?"  
  
"No, not yet." Said Tails, disappointment written on his face. "If only I could think of something."  
  
"Be careful what you wish for, Tails." Said Sonic as he dodged yet another barrage of missiles. "Look what it got me."  
  
"But 'my' wish won't hurt anybody."  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared right next to him. Tails looked, then groaned.  
  
"You were saying?" said Sonic.  
  
"This is the EggDemoltioner." Said Omochao.  
  
"Tell us something that'll actually help us!" shouted Knuckles as he was dodging some more missiles. "And be quick about it!"  
  
"To find his weak spot, make him say 'ah'."  
  
"We know that already!" exclaimed Tails.  
  
"To make him say 'ah', impair his vision."  
  
Tails thought for a moment. He looked at the visor-like eyes, then at Sonic and Knuckles, then at the robot again. Then he came up with an idea.  
  
"Sonic! Knuckles! I got it! Distract it until I can get within firing range! I'll handle the rest!"  
  
So that's what they did. Sonic ran around in zigzag circles around it, Knuckles flew in circles around its head, and Tails crept up on it. When he was within firing range, he fired his own rail cannon at its visor- like eyes, blinding it. The other two stopped what they were doing, and watched as it opened its mouth and fired a rail cannon in a random direction. When it was done firing, Knuckles quickly picked up Sonic, and threw him on its head.  
  
"Sonic Wind!" he shouted.  
  
This time, the robot took extreme damage. It immediately closed its mouth, convulsed for a couple of seconds, and then normalized. Sonic quickly jumped away from it.  
  
"Now all we have to do is repeat the pattern and we'll win!" shouted Tails.  
  
So they did so. They kept repeating the pattern until it was destroyed.  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: At Eggmans 'secret' base]  
  
  
  
As Eggman watched what was going on through the monitor, he scowled in fury.  
  
"Curse that hedgehog and his friends! I haven't thought up a plan yet!" He was thinking frantically as he watched the three get closer and closer to his base. After a few seconds, he finally came up with a quick idea.  
  
"It maybe somewhat rushed, but I have no choice."  
  
He quickly gathered up a bottle, a syringe, and a band-aid. He quickly rushed to the area where he kept Rouge captive. He looked through the window. Rouge was still her normal self, but now conscious. He quickly reversed what little effects the machine did, and then vented out more sleeping gas, causing her to lose consciousness once again. He opened the door, filled the syringe with the concoction, inoculated her with it, and placed the band-aid on the spot that had been poked.  
  
"She can't testify if she can't remember anything." He said as he quickly went to the next room and launched her inside a cannon like machine. He pushed a button, and she was launched somewhere far away. Then he quickly hid himself.  
  
  
  
[Outside of Eggmans 'secret' base]  
  
  
  
The three noticed that Rouge had just been shot out of the base.  
  
"I'll go after her." Said Knuckles, then flew after her.  
  
"I'll go inside." Sonic said.  
  
"You're not going anywhere, hedgehog!" said Eggman via speakers. "What do you want?! I haven't done anything lately!"  
  
"Yeah right." Said Sonic. "Then why did you send that robot after us?"  
  
"Trying to kill you, of course! I'll try doing it every time, even if I don't have anything planned!"  
  
"Look, I'm kinda busy right now, so if you could just hand us the master emerald, we'll be on our way."  
  
"You have got to be kidding! Me? Give up the emerald to you? Ha! I bought it fair and square!"  
  
"Don't make me come in there!"  
  
Suddenly, the door opened, and Eggman, donning his eggwalker. He pulled out the master emerald. "You want it? You have to fight me for it!" Then he put it back.  
  
"No problem." Said Sonic coolly.  
  
Before the scientist could react, he was attacked by a spin dash.  
  
"Give up?"  
  
"That was a cheap shot! Dodge this!"  
  
He fired a combination of missiles from the left and right, but not at Sonic. The blue hedgehog almost laughed at his pathetic aim, but then was a bit worried when Eggman was charging up his rail cannon. He shot it, and since Sonic had nowhere to run, he braced himself, getting ready for extreme pain. That was when he was quickly picked up and saved from the cannon.  
  
Sonic looked up to find that Tails was the one who picked him up just in time.  
  
"You're a lifesaver, buddy."  
  
"Just doin what a hero does."  
  
Before Eggman could turn the missiles to their direction, Tails quickly threw Sonic at the Eggwalker. Sonic quickly used a spin attack, causing even more damage to it. He finished it off by using the Sonic Wind attack, completely destroying the EggWalker. Sonic did a victory pose while Tails picked up the master emerald.  
  
"I can't believe I lost to that hedgehog, again." Muttered Eggman.  
  
"So, is this the master emerald?" asked Sonic.  
  
Tails examined it, and then responded. "Yep, it's the one. No mistaking it."  
  
"Good. Now let's take ol Robuttnik to jail." Said Sonic, but then noticed that Eggman was already gone. "Maybe he's inside the base. I'll go find out." So Sonic rushed inside the base. Two minutes later, he came back. "Nope. I guess he wasn't 'that' stupid."  
  
"Well, we did it, Sonic. Let's go back to the park. There are still many prizes to win."  
  
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that."  
  
"And you still have your date with Amy."  
  
Sonics eyes narrowed. "Oh yeah, we can't forget that."  
  
So the two quickly raced back to Twinkle Park. Meanwhile, Eggman stepped out from behind the base.  
  
"I'll let you have the master emerald for now. I still know the locations of the other remaining chaos emeralds. Until then, enjoy your life, while it lasts!" Then he did his normal evil laugh, and then went back inside his base.  
  
  
  
[Somewhere miles away in the forest]  
  
  
  
We see Knuckles trying to find Rouge. He is looking everywhere, but cannot find her. After an hour of searching, he finally spots her inside of some bushes, slowly walking out of them. He quickly rushed there, and landed in front of her.  
  
"Alright, games over." Said Knuckles. "Sonic and Tails already took back the master emerald. What I want to know is how you got involved! Answer!"  
  
Rouge looked at him in bewilderment. "What, are you talking about?"  
  
"Don't play games with me! I 'know' it was 'you' who took my emerald!"  
  
"Who, are you?"  
  
"This is getting irritating! I can't believe I almost trusted you! You didn't think I would find out?!"  
  
Rouge was still looking at him in confusion. "I-I don't know who you are. I'm not kidding!"  
  
Knuckles looked at her skeptically. "You really expect me to fall for the old amnesia bit? Stop lying!"  
  
This made Rouge back up fearfully. "No! It's not a lie! Really!"  
  
"(What if she's telling the truth? Then again, what if this is another trick? I need a second opinion)."  
  
That's when Omochao appeared.  
  
"Did you know that Rouge has amnesia?"  
  
"Who are you?" asked Rouge.  
  
"Hi. I'm Omochao. I'm here to help you."  
  
"Is what she said about having amnesia true?" asked Knuckles.  
  
"Sure is. Her memory has been erased. It'll come back in time."  
  
"How long?"  
  
"Three."  
  
"Three what?"  
  
"Tough to say. Three can be days, weeks, months, or years."  
  
"What do I do until then?"  
  
"Bye-bye!" then it flew off.  
  
"So, that's it? I have to take care of her until she remembers?"  
  
"I'm so sorry to be such a burden." Rouge said apologetically. "Tell me. What kind of person was I?"  
  
Knuckles thought for a moment, wondering if he should say it. He shrugged off the thought for now. "Listen. I have some friends who might be able to help you. I'll take you to them."  
  
"Was that, robot, one of your friends?"  
  
"Thankfully, no."  
  
"You 'do' remember how to fly, right?"  
  
"I'm not sure. Let me try." So she tried lifting herself up, but only managed to glide. After several tries, she was able to fly again. "Wow! Flying's pretty easy!"  
  
"Alright then. Let's go."  
  
So the two of them flew back to Twinkle Park, with Knuckles being the navigator, of course.  
  
End of chapter 5  
  
  
  
A/N: Well, I hoped you liked it. Were you expecting that? To tell you the truth, I sure wasn't until the event Eggman had to think of something quick to distract Sonic. Anyways, thank you all very much for the reviews. Remember, my email address is rubynall@hotmail.com 


	6. ch6

Check for the disclaimer in chapter 1  
  
  
  
Sonic Tales Chapter 6  
  
  
  
[Twinkle Park]  
  
  
  
Sonic and Tails have just arrived back at Twinkle Park, and are searching right now for Amy and Shadow. As they're searching, something just dawned on Sonic that made him stop in his tracks.  
  
"What's wrong, Sonic?" asked Tails. "Why did you just stop like that?"  
  
"Remember that bet Amy and I had?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Well, it just dawned on me that I, lost."  
  
"How?"  
  
"You see, I left prematurely, and now I'm doomed!"  
  
"Well, maybe she'll give you another chance."  
  
"You 'do' remember who it is we're talking about, right?"  
  
"Oh yeah."  
  
"What am I gonna do?"  
  
Tails thought about it for a moment. After what seemed like several minutes, his eyes lit up. "Sonic? I can't think of anything."  
  
Sonics eyes narrowed. "That doesn't help at all."  
  
"C'mon. Let's find Amy. We'll think of something."  
  
  
  
[Elsewhere in Twinkle Park]  
  
  
  
Amy was walking around by herself. She decided to go and find Sonic the minute she was able to lose Shadow. It was easy, since he didn't put up much of an effort to chase her. As she was searching, she found Sonic and Tails searching for someone. Amy quickly ran up to them.  
  
"Hiya, Sonic!" Amy beamed. "I'm glad to see that you're alright."  
  
"Oh, hi Amy." Sonic replied. "About leaving so sudden, I'm sorry."  
  
"It's okay. You were just helping out. However, you 'did' lose the bet."  
  
"Yeah, about that. Couldn't we discuss another means of a prize? I'll agree on anything."  
  
"Anything?"  
  
Sonic gulped, and then responded. "Anything."  
  
"Good. Then I want you to take me out on a 'proper' date. Dinner, dancing, entertainment, the works. So, what do you say?"  
  
Sonic was a bit surprised at the simplicity of it, but nodded in agreement.  
  
"While we're at it, let's finish off 'this' date by having some fun. Let's go!"  
  
"Amy, for once, I agree with you."  
  
"Don't forget me." Said Tails.  
  
"I wouldn't ever forget my best pal." Said Sonic. "In fact, we'll let you decide what to do first. Are you okay with that, Amy?"  
  
"I'm very much okay with it." She answered. "Make it a good one."  
  
The orange fox thought for a moment. He wanted to do something really fun. He looked around for inspiration. That's when he caught sight of a roller coaster.  
  
"I want us to go on that!" he said while pointing at the huger roller coaster. "I heard that it was built to rival even 'your' speed."  
  
"Really?" asked Sonic.  
  
"I'm hoping."  
  
"Rival my speed, huh. I'm already interested. Let's go!"  
  
"Wait!" exclaimed Amy. "I'm not really sure about that. If it's supposed to be as fast as Sonic, then it might be too scary for me."  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared.  
  
"To comfort your fears of speed, just cling onto Sonic for support."  
  
"How is that supposed to help me?" she asked.  
  
"Well, for starters, you won't fall off. Also, it's an excuse to be close to Sonic."  
  
"Wow! I never really thought about it that way. In that case, let's go!"  
  
Sonic frowned at Omochao. Then he turned to Amy.  
  
"Amy? What's that behind you?"  
  
"Where?" She said as she turned around.  
  
Sonic quickly used this opportunity to pick up Omochao, and hurl it out of the park. When Amy turned around, Sonic smiled.  
  
"It was probably just a bird."  
  
"Can we go now?" Tails asked impatiently. "I've been ready to go for a long time now."  
  
"No time like the present." Said Sonic as they left toward the roller coaster.  
  
  
  
[In front of Twinkle Park]  
  
  
  
Both Knuckles and Rouge have just landed at the entrance to Twinkle Park. After guiding the confused bat through the entrance, Knuckles stopped to think about where to go next. It was a pretty big park, and finding his friends will not be an easy task. Then he realized that he could just use his senses to trace the master emerald, since Sonic should still have it.  
  
So he walked around, trying to get a signal. After some period of time, he finally got something. The two followed the signal until it reached a roller coaster. The rushed to it, and found Sonic, Amy, and Tails waiting in line. They quickly ran to where they are.  
  
"Sonic!" exclaimed Knuckles. "I'm glad I found you! Something strange has really happened!"  
  
"So what else is new?" asked Sonic jokingly, then looked at Rouge. "I see you caught the jewel thief. Why is she here anyways?"  
  
"That's part of the story. When I found her, she couldn't remember a thing. At first I thought it was a trick, but then the look in her eyes proved otherwise."  
  
"So what do you want us to do?"  
  
"Anything that'll help get her memory back."  
  
"And why would you want to do that?"  
  
"Sonic!" Amy scolded. "She may have deceived Knuckles, but two wrongs never make a right!"  
  
"I don't know about that." Said Sonic. "After all, it was wrong of her to take the master emerald and sell it to Eggman, and apparently something went wrong with the sale. So in a way, two wrongs 'did' make a right."  
  
"Can't argue with that." Added Tails. "I think I can help her regain her memory though. I just need to stop by my house." Then he looked at the line slowly moving. "In the meantime, show her around the park. Let her have some fun while her mind is still innocent."  
  
"But shouldn't something as important as this be handled right away?" asked Rouge.  
  
"Well, normally, but I don't want to leave my place in line. Besides, it's not like anyone is after her or anything." Then he notices that he's next. "Well, I'll talk to you later. Have fun!"  
  
Then he walked over to the line, but the chao stopped him.  
  
"Hold it!" the chao said. "You must be of a certain height in order to enter. Are you of a certain height?"  
  
"Are 'you'?"  
  
"Um, I'm not authorized to answer that!"  
  
"Practice what you preach!"  
  
The chao looked around. "Look, if you promise not to make a scene, I'll let you in, but just this once. Deal?"  
  
"Deal!" Then Tails walked in and took a seat.  
  
The chao looked at Amy and Sonic, and grinned. "And I see two lovebirds right over here."  
  
"Knock it off!" exclaimed Sonic. "People might hear you, not that it's true or anything!"  
  
"I'm just kidding. But seriously, you two look like such a great couple. Go ahead."  
  
So the chao let Amy and Sonic in, who immediately took their seats. He then looked at Knuckles and Rouge.  
  
"Are you two getting on or what?"  
  
"Um, sure." Rouge said a little hesitantly.  
  
"I suppose there's no harm in it." Added Knuckles.  
  
So the two were guided to 'their' seats. After everyone was fastened, the ride began. As it was advertised, the roller coaster really 'did' go as fast as Sonic. It went through many loops and turns, each turn being a very sharp one, and each loop going really fast.  
  
Amy was very scared of the new speed, clinging dearly and tightly to Sonics arm. Tails was enjoying himself. He was used to the speed, and it felt even better when he wasn't being dragged while experiencing it. Sonic, however, had to adjust to being carried at such speed, rather than being the one that runs. Knuckles was not used to going this fast in such a long time, not since he raced Sonic a long time ago, but got used to it.  
  
Rouge, never experiencing such speed before, was tightly clinging on to the rail with her eyes shut. Knuckles patted her on the shoulder, reassuring her that she wasn't going to fly off. This made her feel strangely better. She wasn't sure why, but it did. After a while, Sonic actually liked the fact that something went as fast as him, and was enjoying the ride.  
  
It took the ride exactly five minutes to end. Everyone got off, feeing somewhat dizzy, except for Sonic and Tails, who were smiling.  
  
"That was fun, Tails!" beamed Sonic. "We have got to do that again sometime!"  
  
"Same here." Tails agreed. "What did you think, Amy?"  
  
"A, bit...too fast." Amy said while still clinging to Sonics arm.  
  
"You get used to it after a while." Said Tails. "Then it becomes so much fun, any other speed becomes just plain boring."  
  
"Well, what should we do now?" asked Sonic. "We'll let Amy decide this time."  
  
"Thank you Sonic." Said Amy as she looked around, finally letting go of Sonics arm. Like Tails, she also looked around for inspiration. It took her a little longer than him to find it, but then she pointed to a carousel. "I want to go there!"  
  
Sonic and Knuckles both gaped.  
  
"You have got to be kidding." Said Knuckles.  
  
"A bit too plain, don't you think?" asked Sonic.  
  
"Yeah, I know." Said Amy. "But I want a nice slow ride before we eat. You know, give our stomachs some time to settle."  
  
"Good." Said Rouge. "I could use something nice and leisurely." She was about to fall from the slight dizziness, but Knuckles caught her just in time.  
  
That's when they're eyes met. They stared at each other for a couple minutes. Sonic decided to break the silence by speaking up.  
  
"That's a pretty good idea, Amy. I'm surprised that I actually agree with it." Then he paused. "We don't have to share the same horse, do we?"  
  
Amy giggled. "Not unless you want to. But I 'do' want one that's right next to you."  
  
"Fair enough."  
  
"I guess I 'am' getting a little hungry." Said Tails. "Let's hurry, then! The sooner we go on this ride, the sooner we can eat!"  
  
So under the rushing guide of Tails, the group of five went to the carousel.  
  
  
  
[Eggmans 'secret' base]  
  
  
  
Dr. Eggman was recovering from the battle, all the while thinking of a way to retrieve the remaining chaos emeralds. It was bad enough that his cover was blown, and that he lost the master emerald, but what added to that was the fact that he was actually stumped as what to do next. He pondered the thought of how he can get the rest of the chaos emeralds without being noticed. He read the files that contained the whereabouts of them. He grinned evilly. He had just noticed that the three he needed were far away from station square.  
  
"I need to act fast." He said to himself. "Right now, Sonic will think that I'll just lie low, so searching for those three chaos emeralds will be completely unexpected! That'll only leave me with one last emerald. The one that Shadow possesses."  
  
He turned on the monitor to see Shadow. He was playing a few games with the two Marias. He watched them play, while thinking of a plan. Then, it hit him.  
  
"That's it! I will use those two female friends of his to lure him into a trap! Of course, I'll have to make him come alone, so it won't be as easy as it sounds. This scheme will work, but I had better get these other chaos emeralds first!"  
  
He got up, but fell back down due to a sharp pain in his back.  
  
"Cursed hedgehog! I'll start my search tomorrow. That'll give me some time to rest. Until then, Shadow, enjoy yourself while you can!"  
  
Then he laughed some more, which was cut short by another sharp pain.  
  
"But first, to the recovery chamber!"  
  
Then he slowly walked away.  
  
  
  
[Elsewhere in Twinkle Park]  
  
  
  
As Shadow was finishing up what he was doing, he couldn't help but feel a sense of danger nearing, but couldn't quite figure out what it was. His thoughts were cut short by Sr. Maria speaking.  
  
"Is something wrong?" she asked.  
  
"No, I'm just thinking again." He answered.  
  
"Are you sure you should've let Amy run off like that? She seemed like a nice girl. Odd, but still nice."  
  
"She'll be alright. Sonic always seems to have a knack for getting people out of danger."  
  
Sr. Maria went to look at lil Maria, who had a tired look on her face.  
  
"Well, I guess I better take her home. Thanks for everything, Shadow. We had a good time."  
  
"Don't mention it."  
  
Then the two left. Shadow was thinking again, but it was 'again' cut short. This time though, by Big. Shadow stared at the big purple cat, and then responded.  
  
"What do you want?"  
  
Big responded. "Duhh, did you see Froggy anywhere? I can't find him."  
  
"No, can't say that I have."  
  
"Oh. Can you help me find Froggy?"  
  
Shadow was about to bluntly turn him down, but his conscience started to bother him again. He could see that Big, no matter how stupid, was in distress, and needed help, although he would probably just lose his Froggy again.  
  
"Yeah, sure. I'll help you."  
  
That's when Omochao appeared.  
  
"I'll help too."  
  
"Go away!" Said Shadow irritably.  
  
"Did you know that I can help you find Froggy?"  
  
"And did you know that I don't need your help?"  
  
"Aw, c'mon! It'll be fun."  
  
"And what if I say no?"  
  
"Then I'll help you anyways."  
  
"Fine! I guess you can tag along. Just be sure to keep up with me! It's bad enough that I have to slow down for Big to keep up with me!"  
  
"I can help with that, too." Said Omochao as it picked up Big. "Now we can at least walk."  
  
Shadow was shocked. "H-how d-did you d-do that? He must weigh a ton or something!"  
  
"Robots have a lot of strength, no matter how small." Omochao answered.  
  
"Yay!" beamed Big excitedly. "I got two friends that help find Froggy!"  
  
"That's right!" beamed Omochao.  
  
Shadow groaned. "Who said anything about being friends? I'm just going to help you because of how pathetic this is!"  
  
"Yay!" Big beamed again. "I got two friends that help find Froggy!"  
  
Shadow just rolled his eyes. "Let's just get this over with!"  
  
So the group went out in search for Bigs Froggy.  
  
Sometime later, they found Froggy, but it jumped inside of the ocean before they could react. The three rushed over by the pier.  
  
"Now what do we do?" asked Shadow.  
  
"To get the Frog, just swim after it." Said Omochao.  
  
"And get wet? I'll pass. It's not it's going to die or anything."  
  
"To get the Frog without getting wet, just fish for it."  
  
"Big great at fishing!" Big said excitedly. He got out his fishing rod, and threw it in the ocean, hoping that his Froggy will take the lure.  
  
Shadow looked at the lure. He noticed that it had no bait.  
  
"And just how is he going to catch it without bait?"  
  
"He always does." Answered Omochao.  
  
"How long does it usually take?"  
  
"About two to three hours."  
  
Shadow just groaned at this.  
  
  
  
[Three hours later]  
  
  
  
After a long time of waiting, Big finally caught Froggy. He jumped for joy, hugging it and shouting for joy. Suddenly, as if by bad luck, Froggy slipped out of his grip, and was headed back into the ocean. Shadow quickly used chaos control to grab the frog. He quickly took it away from the pier.  
  
"Omochao." Shadow said. "You wouldn't happen to have an aquarium on you?"  
  
Omochao pulled out an aquarium from out of nowhere. "Here you go. I'm glad I could help you."  
  
Shadow looked at Omochao in a strange manner. He was wondering how and why Omohcao would be carrying something as strange as that, but figured that it's best not to look a gift horse in the mouth, and shrugged off the thought. He put Froggy in the aquarium, and shut the lid. He then gave it to Big.  
  
"There, I helped you! Now I can go see if Sonic ever returned. Don't stupidly lose that again!" Then he used chaos control to get back to the park.  
  
Omochao smiled at Big. "Have fun." Then he flew off.  
  
Big looked at Froggy. "Duhh, me so glad that you back!" Then he looked at the aquarium. "Duhh, you don't like it there, do you?" So Big let Froggy out. "There! You walk freely!"  
  
Froggy smiled at Big, and then jumped away towards the beach. Big followed him until he tripped. When he got up, he couldn't see which direction Froggy went to.  
  
"Duhh, Froggy? Froggy? Where you go?"  
  
So Big once again went out on his never ending quest to find his Froggy.  
  
  
  
End of chapter 6  
  
  
  
Well, I hoped you liked it. Thank you all so much for the reviews.^_^  
  
To Bakura'slittlegirl: See? There's still another chance of a pairing.  
  
To HyperShadow100: You know, you made a valid point about the whole Sonic losing the bet. I didn't even realize that. Thanks for being so observant!^_^  
  
Remember, my email address is rubynall@hotmail.com  
  
Once again, thank you all for the reviews. 


	7. ch7

Check for the disclaimer in chapter 1  
  
  
  
Sonic Tales Chapter 7  
  
  
  
It has been a couple of days, and Amy was at her apartment, looking at the mirror, trying on new cosmetics. After a few minutes, the phone rang. Amy went to answer it. When she did, it was Shadow.  
  
"Hello." Said Amy  
  
"Hi Amy." Answered Shadow.  
  
"Oh, hi Shadow. It's a little surprising to hear from you. What's up?"  
  
"Just reminding you of the date that you and Sonic are having tomorrow."  
  
"Don't worry, I remember. I could never forget something like that."  
  
"Good. Just wanted to remind you, since I'll be reminding Sonic as well."  
  
"Oh I'm sure he wouldn't forget."  
  
"Then you overestimated him. I wouldn't normally be bothering myself with such trivial matters, but seeing Sonic do something reluctantly is a sight worth seeing. Besides, I can tell he's holding back emotions."  
  
Amy's eyes lit up. "Really?"  
  
"Yep, just as long as you don't screw it up."  
  
"Thanks Shadow. I really appreciate it."  
  
"Yeah, whatever. It was Omochao's idea to tell you."  
  
"He can be pretty helpful sometimes."  
  
"Yeah, when he's not giving out useless information. Just yesterday, when I was running by the power plant, he told me that explosives were a bad thing! Like I didn't already know that!"  
  
Amy was no longer paying attention, but was in a sort of bliss, thinking about her date with Sonic. Shadow noticed the silence, and hung up. After the annoying dial tone brought Amy out of her trance, she hung up the phone. She then looked at herself in the mirror again, and frowned.  
  
"I'm going to need some new clothes. After all, first impressions count. I think I'll take Rouge with me. If I can find her, that is."  
  
Then she exited her apartment, got in her car, and drove off.  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: White Jungle]  
  
  
  
During this time, Eggman was searching the White Jungle for the other chaos emerald, since that was where the computer gave off a signal. He looked around, searching. He finally found a temple. Upon reaching the entrance, he read the sign that was in front of it.  
  
"Warning. Dangerous traps inside. Enter at your own risk."  
  
Eggman just grinned "Bah! Nothing is going to keep me from obtaining that chaos emerald! I'll just have to find a way to deactivate those traps."  
  
He thought for a moment. After a while of thinking, he growled in frustration.  
  
"This is taking too long! I'm doing this the easy way!"  
  
Then he pulled a remote out of his pocket. He pressed a few buttons, and then put it back.  
  
"There! In just a few moments, a few of my robots will just test the grounds for me. I'll just wait here."  
  
So he waited and waited and waited. For what seemed like an eternity, the robots finally arrived.  
  
"What took you so long!? You were supposed to be here hours ago!"  
  
The robots just shrugged.  
  
"Never mind! Just go in there! And stay in front of me!"  
  
So they did. When they all entered the temple, the entrance shut itself closed. One of the robots took a few steps forward, and a barrage of stalagmites emerged from the ground, completely impaling it. One of the other robots took another step forward in a different direction, and nothing happened. However, when it took another couple of steps, it too met the same fate as the first robot.  
  
Eggman was studying this pattern. That's when he noticed that the floor leading to the next room was all checkered. It was brown squares and beige squares. He noticed that the squares that the robots stepped on were beige squares. So he sent another robot to step on a brown square. When it did, nothing happened. He then grinned.  
  
"Okay everyone, listen up! Step only on the brown squares! Stepping on the beige ones will cause you to be impaled by stalagmites!"  
  
So that's what they all did. However, one of the robots accidentally stepped on a beige square, and was treated to a bath of spikes. When everyone was finally across, Eggman noticed a different looking robot in front of the door leading to the next room. He approached it, and sure enough, it was Omochao.  
  
"Be careful for certain squares." Omochao said.  
  
Eggman looked at the squares, and then back at Omochao.  
  
"Where were you when we were crossing them?!"  
  
Omochao looked at the temple entrance, and then back at Eggman.  
  
"Oops, sorry. I stood in the wrong place."  
  
"Fortunately for you, I wasn't hurt! Now, out of the way!"  
  
Still in his Eggwalker, he stormed into the next room. He looked around. He saw eight cubes in the room. He looked at Omochao, expecting some kind of hint. Omochao looked around the cubes, then went back.  
  
"One of these cubes led the right way to the final room, and the others lead to certain perils. To narrow your choices, find the one that is slightly different from the rest."  
  
"I have a better, much faster idea." Said Eggman. He then signaled eight robots. "The eight of you each pick up a cube! Now!"  
  
So they did. They approached them, and in unison, picked up the cubes. The incorrect cubes exploded, while the correct one remained intact. The exploding cubes impact was strong enough to destroy the robots holding them. The next door opened. So, with only two robots left, they entered the next room.  
  
The final room was nothing like the other two. Instead of being filled with traps, it was plain and empty. The only thing in the room was a rather large robot that stood in the center of the room. It looked to be about thirty feet in height, rock-like features, human-like body, and a head that seemed all too familiar to the scientist. He looked closer. When he did, he gasped. He recognized the face of this specific robot. It had a head similar to that of a Pharaoh.  
  
"It can't be! How is this possible?!"  
  
That's when Omochao spoke up.  
  
"This is the Egg Golem. It was once a minion of Dr. Ivo Eggman Robotnik, but it found a job right here in the temple. It asks a riddle, and if the person wants the treasure inside, the person answers it. If they are incorrect, the Egg Golem will destroy that person. If they answer correctly, it will give them passage."  
  
The Egg Golem looked at Eggman, and smirked.  
  
"I am going to enjoy this." It said. "I'll make sure this riddle is incredibly difficult. Are you ready?"  
  
"Of course I'm ready!" answered Eggman. "I have an I.Q. of over three hundred! Besides, if worst comes to worst, I can always defeat you like I did before!"  
  
"We shall see. Now, here is the riddle. 1, 2, 3, 5,8,13. What is the next number?"  
  
Eggman thought for a minute, then answered. "21. Each number adds itself, leading to another answer."  
  
The Egg Golem growled. "Perhaps that was too easy. I dare you to try one more!"  
  
"And why should I?"  
  
"Because.....you just have to!"  
  
"Brat! Fine! Go ahead!"  
  
"Good! Now, here is the final riddle. T, O, F, O, F, N, T, S. What is the next letter?"  
  
"Why are you asking mathematical riddles?"  
  
"Because these kinds of riddles are rarely solved, and not many people are good at math."  
  
So Eggman thought about it for a while. It took a little longer for him to figure this one out, but he finally responded.  
  
"The next letter is F."  
  
"And explain how you came up with that conclusion."  
  
"PI is used for 3, 14159265, the first letter of each number. Ha! I win!"  
  
"Impossible! Only science geeks could've gotten those correctly!"  
  
"I.Q. over 300, remember?"  
  
"Damn! You weren't supposed to win!............No matter! I'll destroy you anyways!"  
  
"Bring it on!"  
  
So the boss battle began.  
  
[E-G-G - G-O-L-E-M]  
  
Eggman quickly moved to the right, just in time to dodge a laser blast. He fired at the stomach areas, creating little cracks in its body. The Egg Golem retaliated by thrusting its arms at him, but they are destroyed by Eggmans rail cannon. While it was reassembling itself, Eggman shot a barrage of missiles at its body, finally revealing the cores of its body. The Egg Golem finished reassembling its arms, and was now slashing and dashing at the Eggwalker.  
  
After some dodging and some getting hit at times, an opening in the Egg Golems defenses was revealed. Wasting no time, Eggman fired frantically at one of the open spots until it was destroyed. The Egg Golem quickly turned around to try to protect its other vulnerable spots, but Eggman just fired more missiles at its back until the weak spots were revealed there as well. So he just fired and fired until all of the weak spots were destroyed. The Egg Golem then fell, face first, onto the floor.  
  
Wanting to make sure it was completely destroyed, Eggman fired many rail cannon blasts at its body until it was nothing but a pile of rubble. Satisfied with his hard work, he jumped for joy (in his Eggwalker of course). He then proceeded to the final door, and entered it. Once inside, he gazed in awe at all of the many types of treasures that were contained in there.  
  
He ordered the two remaining robots he had to hoard as much treasure as they could store, while he searched for the chaos emerald. After a few minutes of searching, he finally found it. He picked it up, admired it, and then put it in his pocket.  
  
"Five down, two to go." Then he hoarded some treasure in his Eggwalker. He looked around, and saw that there was still much treasure to be collected. "I guess I'll have to come back here later. Taking over the world comes first!" Then he turned to the robots. "Let's move out! Get back to the base as fast as you can! This time, don't take so long!"  
  
So they hurried along back to the entrance of the temple, which the door was already open, due to them solving all of the traps. The exited, and then went back to his base.  
  
  
  
[Sonic and Tails house]  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, Tails was working on the Tornado, while Sonic was in the same room, pacing back and forth with concern.  
  
"Why did I ever agree to that date with Amy?" he asked. "What was I thinking?"  
  
"You did it so that she couldn't claim you for herself." Answered Tails from under the Tornado. "What's the big deal anyways? It's just a date."  
  
"Not just any date, but a date with Amy. Amy Rose! The same Amy Rose that's constantly around me! The same Amy Rose that I usually try to avoid!"  
  
"That may be true, but you always could've told her off."  
  
"I know, but, for some strange reason, looking into her eyes just, I don't know, calms whatever frustrations I've built up."  
  
"Sounds to me like you have feelings for her."  
  
"What?! No way! I'm a solo hedgehog. I don't have special feelings for anyone."  
  
"Whatever, Sonic. Say what you like." Then he got up out of the Tornado. "All I can go by is what I observe."  
  
"Can we change the subject?"  
  
"Oh, alright. Just when it was getting fun. Can you press enter on the computer? Its energy should recharge the Tornado."  
  
Sonic went up to the computer, and then pushed enter. Rather than charging up the Tornado, it drained from it, and then exploded. Sonic quickly jumped back.  
  
"Hey Tails! What's with your computer?!"  
  
Tails quickly got up, and ran over to it. He frantically searched around its remains.  
  
"I'm not sure. It's a new model. The only way it could've reacted that way was if somebody sent a virus, but I don't know of any-"Tails stopped in mid sentence. "No way! How did Eggman do this?!"  
  
"You mean he was here recently?"  
  
"No. This was obviously done sometime ago."  
  
"He probably did it when we were at the park or something."  
  
"Perhaps, but now I have a lot of work to do. Could you go buy some more parts for me? I have a lot of debugging to do."  
  
"Sure thing, buddy." Then he ran outside.  
  
  
  
[Angel Island]  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, on Angel Island, Knuckles and Rouge were where the master emerald was.  
  
"Do you remember anything about this?" asked Knuckles as he pointed to the master emerald.  
  
"Well, it 'does' ring a bell. I vaguely remember something of it, but it's still a blank."  
  
"In the past, you've tried countless times to try and steal it."  
  
"Why would I do such an awful thing?"  
  
"Because you were a jewel thief."  
  
"Oh. I'm sorry."  
  
"I wish I could say that it's alright, but it's not."  
  
Rouge sighed at this. "Now I'm not so sure if I want to remember who I was. Why would I do this to you if I have such strong f-"She quickly stopped herself. "Um, I mean, I think I do."  
  
Knuckles raised an eyebrow. He was positive that what he heard was correct, but wasn't quite sure. "(Does this mean that her feelings were real? If so, she has quite a way of showing it! Is she really telling the truth? Or is it just the amnesia talking? Where's Omochao when you need him)?"  
  
Rouge looked at him quizzically. "Um, Knuckles? What are you thinking about?"  
  
Knuckles quickly broke his train of thought. "Um, well, it's, it's kinda hard to say."  
  
"Well, I probably wouldn't understand anyways. Sorry for asking."  
  
"No, you would. It's just kinda hard to admit it."  
  
"Admit what?"  
  
"Um, well, you know..."  
  
"No, tell me."  
  
At this time, they were only inches away from each other. Knuckles was still having trouble saying what was on his mind. Finally, he spoke clearly.  
  
"Well, I sort of, kind of, feel the same way."  
  
Rouge slightly blushed. "R-really? So, you're not mad?"  
  
"That's the problem. Right now, it's nice to be around you. However, once you regain your memory, you might go back to your thieving ways, and that worries me."  
  
"Oh, I see." She said a bit sadly. "You're worried that I might just use you to get the master emerald."  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
"No, it's alright. I understand. I would probably do the same thing if I were in your position. However, couldn't we just wait and see? Maybe I'll still keep the memories I'm having right now. Maybe I'll give up stealing the master emerald."  
  
"Well, it's worth a try. And if it doesn't work out, we can at least be rivaling acquaintances."  
  
Yes, maybe. I just, hope that I can change, once I get my memory back, that is."  
  
The two just stood there in silence for what seemed like hours, although it was only just minutes, staring into each others eyes. They continued to do so until their silence was broken by a car horn. They quickly turned to see who it was. It was Amy.  
  
"There you are!" she said. "I was going to go shopping for something to wear on my date, and I was wondering if you wanted to come along."  
  
"Um, sure." Answered Rouge. "I'd like that very much."  
  
"What about you?" Amy asked Knuckles.  
  
"No thanks." He answered. "I'll stay here and do what I'm supposed to do. Guard the master emerald."  
  
"Okay, suit yourself. Let's go, Rouge."  
  
"By the way," Knuckles interrupted, "how did you get here?"  
  
"Oh, that one's easy! My car can hover."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Well, let's go, Rouge!"  
  
So Rouge got in Amy's car, and the two drove off towards the station square mall. Knuckles just sat back down, and continued with his job of guarding the master emerald.  
  
  
  
[Station Square Streets]  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, Shadow was in the shady area of a street corner, watching all of the passers-by. Since he wasn't very sociable, he spent most of his time alone. While he was watching, a blue blur whizzed right past him, almost knocking him on the ground.  
  
"That could only be Sonic!" He muttered to himself. "Can't he watch where he's running? I guess I'm gonna have to teach him a little lesson." Then he ran towards Sonic until he finally caught up with him.  
  
When he did, Sonic noticed, and then glanced at him.  
  
"Oh, hey Shadow. What brings you here?"  
  
"You do!"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"You weren't watching where you weren't running, and almost knocked me over!"  
  
"Oh. Sorry about that."  
  
"Could your date with Amy really be 'that' bad as to not respect others on the road?"  
  
"More than you know, Shadow."  
  
"Well in that case, I'm gonna have to teach you a little lesson in respect."  
  
"Is that a challenge?"  
  
"Yes. We'll have a race. First one who reaches the end of the Radical Highway wins."  
  
"But the traffic is murder right now!"  
  
"Exactly. That makes it more challenging."  
  
"You're on! What do I get when I win?"  
  
"You mean 'if' you win."  
  
"Yeah, when I win."  
  
Then the both of them stopped running.  
  
"Whatever." Continued Shadow. "If you win, I'll do anything you ask. However, if 'I' win, I want you to show Amy the best time of her life."  
  
"What?! What is it with you and wanting to get Amy and I together?!"  
  
"I love to see you suffer. Besides, she deserves it after pursuing you for so long. Anyways, are you up to it?"  
  
"I'll win this hands down!"  
  
"Alright then, let's start!"  
  
So the two of them ran, each one of them avoiding traffic. Sonic was way ahead of Shadow. Just when Sonic was near the finish line, Shadow used chaos control, and was already there. Sonic ran right in front of him.  
  
"Hey! That's cheating!"  
  
"I didn't say that we couldn't use aid."  
  
"I would've won that too!"  
  
"Could've, but didn't. Now, honor your part of the bargain tomorrow."  
  
"Fine! But only because of that stupid bet!"  
  
"Whatever. You know you're going to enjoy it."  
  
"What do you know?!"  
  
"Weren't you supposed to be going somewhere?"  
  
Sonic then remembered. "Oh yeah! I was supposed to go buy parts! I gotta go! We'll discuss this later, Shadow!" Then he ran off.  
  
Shadow grinned. "Well, that's two people I helped. Amy and Sonic, although he doesn't know it yet." Then he put the chaos emerald away, and left.  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: At Sonic and Tails home]  
  
  
  
It's been hours since Sonic left, and he still hasn't gotten back from the shop yet.  
  
"What's taking him so long?!" Tails said impatiently. "I really need those parts, and I need some help fixing these things!"  
  
That's when Omochao appeared.  
  
"Did you know that you have ten machines to fix?"  
  
Tails groaned. He couldn't believe that he was about to ask Omochao for help. "Um, I'm kinda shorthanded, and was wondering if you could help me."  
  
"I love helping people."  
  
  
  
  
  
End of chapter 7  
  
  
  
Well, that's it for chapter 7. Sorry for taking so long. Thanksgiving weekend took a lot of my time away. Thank you all for reviewing. As long as you keep reading, I'll keep updating.^_^ 


	8. ch8

Disclaimer: Check for the disclaimer in chapter 1.  
  
Anyways, I'm sorry for such a long time of not updating. I spent my entire Xmas break outside of cyberspace, and when I came back, schoolwork kept me very busy. For those of you who left a signed review and/or an email address, I have already sent you an update. With all of that said, on with the story!  
  
  
  
Sonic tales  
  
Chapter 8  
  
  
  
[Sonic and Tails home: Some time later]  
  
  
  
After what seemed like hours, Sonic came back, only to find that a lot of the machinery have been scattered across the floor.  
  
"What happened here?" asked Sonic.  
  
"Well," began Tails, "you were taking so long to return, that I had to reduce to asking Omochao for help! Giving hints to fix things only makes for more confusion!"  
  
"Speaking of which, where 'is' Omochao?"  
  
"Off helping someone. Frankly, I couldn't be happier."  
  
"Well, here are the parts you need. Sorry about being late. I bumped into Shadow, and for some strange reason, he wanted to race me." Then he shrugged his shoulders. "Go figure."  
  
"Maybe you weren't watching where you were running or something." Tails said as he started fixing the machines once again.  
  
Sonic stepped out of the door. "I'm going to chao world. I'll be back later." Then he left.  
  
Before Tails could ask why, he was already out of earshot. He just shrugged, closed the door, and went back to work.  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: At Station square mall]  
  
  
  
Amy and Rouge were in the clothing department, seeing what kinds of clothes Amy could wear for her date with Sonic. For some strange reason, everything that Amy picked was either cute and/or pink.  
  
"Well, what do you think?" asked Amy was she was showing off a pink version of the usual dress that she wears.  
  
"A little typical, don't you think?" answered Rouge. "I think you should try something different."  
  
"Alright, but nothing 'too' different. I wouldn't want to wear something like that." She said as she pointed to the usual outfit that Rouge wore.  
  
Rouge laughed a little. "Don't worry. I'll find something that's more your style, only not so cutesy."  
  
"What's wrong with cutesy?"  
  
"Nothing, if you're not trying to impress someone."  
  
"Well, I guess I 'could' try something a 'little' different. What do you have in mind?"  
  
"First off, I think we should find something to match your quill color. Red and magenta should do."  
  
So they looked through the many clothing designs, taking out possible choices, and having Amy try them on. After some time of doing this, they were narrowed down to two choices. The first choice was a red gown with white laced shoes, and the second choice was a magenta blouse with a white skirt, and white boots.  
  
Amy's eyes lit up. "I love both of these! I'll buy both of them!"  
  
"Good for you." Said Rouge. "But, which one are you going to wear for the date?"  
  
"Um....I'm not sure. I'll definitely have a hard time deciding. These two outfits are great!"  
  
"Well, we'll worry about that later. For now, let's head to the cosmetics department. Maybe you'll find the right color to match what you're wearing."  
  
"No, I prefer the natural look."  
  
"Then let's find something to enhance that 'natural' look."  
  
"Okay!"  
  
So after paying for both of the outfits, the two headed towards the cosmetics department.  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: At Angel Island]  
  
  
  
Knuckles was doing was he usually did; guarding the master emerald, being bored as usual. Only this time, some thoughts were in his mind. Most of it was about Rouge, but something else was bugging him. Something more important. But he couldn't quite place his finger as to what it was.  
  
"I should be content over the fact that Eggman hasn't shown his face in quite some time." He said to himself. "However, he must be planning something. I may not know what it is yet, but I have to guard to master emerald very closely. Not only that, but I can't seem to stop thinking about Rouge. Will her memory ever come back? And, if it does, will she still be the person she is now, or will she revert back to her old ways? Man, I hate being in suspense! Where's Omochao? He hasn't been around me for some time now."  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: In chao world]  
  
  
  
Sonic walked through the chao lobby. While he was looking around, he saw Eggman walk out of dark chao world. Eggman saw Sonic, and quickly became alert.  
  
"Sonic! What are 'you' doing here?!"  
  
"I was about to ask you the same question!"  
  
"I raise a chao here!"  
  
"So do I. In fact, that's why I'm even here."  
  
"Oh. Well, since this is chao world, I'll let you go for now."  
  
"Whatever, Eggbutt. I'll let you go as well."  
  
"Consider yourself lucky, hedgehog. The next time you see me, it'll be your last!" Then Eggman left chao world.  
  
Sonic just shrugged, and then went into light chao world. Once there, he looked around for the two chao that he raised. He whistled, and the two ran towards him. The two chao weren't ordinary looking chao at all. The first one was his, and the other one was a gift that he was going to give to Amy when nobody was looking.  
  
Sonics chao was glittery blue, with cute, round eyes, and the back of its head resembled the quills on the back of Sonics head. Amy's chao was glittery pink, with cute, somewhat slanted eyes, and the back of its head resembled the quills on the back of Amy's head.  
  
[Authors note: There really "are" chao like that. At last years E3, anyone who brought their GameCube memory card received their choice of a free Sonic chao, Knuckles chao, or an Amy chao.]  
  
"Hello Cool-son." Hello, uh..well, we'll let Amy decide what to name you. Anyways, did you two learn anything new?"  
  
The two chao nodded, and then began to sing and play instruments. Then, they showed off their flying and swimming skills. Finally, they planted a tree, and painted graffiti on the floor.  
  
"Close enough."  
  
After spending some time taking care of the chao, he bid them farewell and left chao world. Sometime later, he returned home, and was greeted by Tails.  
  
"Why did you take off like that?" he asked. "You were supposed to help me with this!"  
  
"Sorry, buddy. I had to feed the chao before it starved."  
  
"Well, now that you're here, let's get to work."  
  
"Sure thing, Tails. But first, some lunch."  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: Station Square beach]  
  
  
  
Big was still searching for his Froggy. He kept searching and searching.  
  
"Duh, where froggy go? Froggy! Frroooggyyy!! Where are you?!"  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared next to him.  
  
"To find your Froggy, follow your nose."  
  
"Duh...what that mean?"  
  
After several seconds of just standing there, Big finally decided to sniff the air. It smelled like a barbeque. So he decided to follow the smell. When he reached there, he found some guy cooking burgers on a grill. He looked under the grill, and found Froggy there, eating some bugs that were trying to get to the food.  
  
"Froggy!" exclaimed Big as he ran over there. He knocked over the grill and picked up Froggy. "Froggy! I finally found you!"  
  
The guy that was cooking the burgers recovered from the shock long enough to speak. "Hey! Look what you did to my grill! And that's 'my' bug repellent you just took!"  
  
Big just looked at him vacantly. The guy shook his head, and took Froggy. "This is mine! Go get your own!"  
  
Big turned around to Omochao. "Duh, I thought you said to follow my nose!"  
  
"I did." Answered Omochao. "I was referring to 'that' grill over there."  
  
Big saw the direction that Omochao was pointing to, and saw a horrible sight. Somehow, Froggy had managed to sneak into one of the burgers, and was about to get eaten by an unsuspecting woman.  
  
"Froggy! Noo!"  
  
"To help Froggy, throw your weight around."  
  
Of course, this did not register in Bigs mind. He just stood there, trying to figure out what Omochao was saying. After some time, a scream could be heard. It was the woman.  
  
"AAAhh!!!" she shrieked. "I almost ate a frog!!"  
  
"Too late." Said Omochao.  
  
Then the woman threw the frog into the ocean. Big saw this and readied his fishing rod.  
  
"Froggy! I'll save you!" Then he ran to the ocean to fish.  
  
"Here we go again." Said Omochao, and then flew off towards a random direction.  
  
  
  
[Later: Station Square outskirts: 10:30 pm.]  
  
  
  
Dr. Eggman, in his eggflyer, was hovering over the Station Square museum. He landed on the roof, and then approached the sunroof. He looked over at the many guards inside.  
  
"This is going to be all too easy." He said to himself. "I could do this the careful way, or the easy way. Which one shall it be?"  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared right next to him.  
  
"To make your decision easier, flip a coin."  
  
Eggman grinned evilly. "I have a better idea."  
  
He put on a gas mask, sprayed some contents on Omochao, placed a leaky bag around it, and then threw it down the sunroof. The scientist watched as Omochao was flying around, the contents in the bag causing the guards to instantly fall asleep. The contents also revealed any laser security lights that were present. Now using his Eggmobile, he hovered himself down, and went for the chaos emerald that was on display. When he took it, he put it in his pocket.  
  
"Six down and one to go!"  
  
Omochao flew next to him. "Owie! I can't believe you did that to me?! Now I'm mad! I'm not going to help you anymore!"  
  
"Not a problem with me. Now, for a way out of here."  
  
Eggman decided to just bust through the front door, since he already disabled the alarms. Then he used a remote to call back his Eggflyer. When it came, he boarded it, and began to fly off. Just when he was about to take off, something hit him, causing him to almost tumble off.  
  
"What happened?!" Then he looked towards the attacker. It was Shadow. "What are you doing here?!"  
  
"Just passing through." Shadow answered. "I'm afraid I cannot let you leave with that emerald."  
  
"Just try and stop me!"  
  
"If you insist."  
  
So the battle began. Eggman flew as high as possible, and then fired rapid lasers at Shadow, who dodged them with ease. Shadow tried to jump towards him, but was out of reach. Omochao hovered around Shadow.  
  
"To reach the Eggflyer, throw an object at it, and then attack it."  
  
"Good idea." Said Shadow as he picked up Omochao.  
  
"Hey! Wait a minute! I'm not a tool to be thrown at bad guys! I provide hints to help you."  
  
"You seem like both to me." Then he threw Omochao at the Eggflyer, which caused it to take some damage, making the altitude drop. Shadow quickly hit him with the chaos spear, causing even more damage. Then he used chaos control to get right next to him, and then spin dashed him off of his Eggflyer.  
  
The scientist quickly got up. "You'll pay for this!" He then used a remote to call his Eggwalker back to him. He boarded it, and then fired everything he had at Shadow, who was dodging it as quickly as possible.  
  
"You're too slow, Eggman!"  
  
"Dodge this if you can!"  
  
He fired several missiles while advancing towards Shadow, who was dodging and backing up at the same time. He continued to do this until he was backed by an alley wall.  
  
"Got you right where I want you! Rail cannon!"  
  
Eggman fired towards Shadow at full blast, who just grinned as he used chaos control to teleport himself behind Eggman. While the cannon was firing, he spin dashed the Eggwalker, which caused it to stumble. Then he threw the scientist out of his machine, and then used chaos spear.  
  
The now twitching Eggman just laid there. Shadow searched his pockets until he found the chaos emerald that he had. He picked it up. Unfortunately, large talon like arms grabbed him, causing him to drop the emerald. Eggman got up, and laughed triumphantly.  
  
"Ha! I tricked you into thinking I was too injured to battle! I did some research, and created that machine to come to my aid, should any hedgehogs intervene with my plans! It'll hold you for a good five minutes. That's more than enough time for me to make my getaway!"  
  
Then he picked up the chaos emerald. "I'd take yours right now, but I wouldn't want to risk my chance for escape. I'll come back for it later! Farewell, Shadow!" Then he saw that Shadow was breaking through the talons. "What!? Well, fortunately, I planned ahead. You see, I set a bomb somewhere in this area. You have five minutes to find it!" Then he jumped in his Eggmobile, and quickly flew off. Several seconds later, Shadow broke free.  
  
"Damn! Eggmans going to get away!" Then he looked around. "No time for that now. I have to find that bomb!"  
  
At that time, Omochao appeared.  
  
"To find the bomb, search in the most unlikely of places."  
  
So he did. He searched the museum, the sewers, and even the roofs. He only had one minute left now. He thought frantically. Finally, Shadow noticed a strange bag that was on Omochao. He quickly ran up to Omochao, and then looked in the bag. Sure enough, the bomb was in there.  
  
"(I'm surprised it didn't go off when I threw Omochao at the Eggflyer)." Then he said aloud. "Well, this really 'was' a very unlikely place." Then, he quickly grabbed Omochao, used chaos control, which teleported him to an open field, dropped Omochao, and teleported back to the city.  
  
Five seconds later, the bomb exploded. Shadow took a deep breath, and then exhaled. Then he realized what he just done.  
  
"I accidentally left Omochao with the bomb!..................Oh well."  
  
Suddenly, Omochao appeared.  
  
"The bomb is gone. You have saved the city."  
  
"Yeah. I guess I did. Oh, and sorry about the whole not taking you with me thing."  
  
"That's okay. I'll just spend some 'extra' helping time with you."  
  
Shadow groaned at this. He just walked back home, with Omochao following him, of course.  
  
  
  
[Later: Eggmans 'secret' base]  
  
  
  
  
  
Eggman was sitting down in his resting chair, recovering from the injuries.  
  
"Blast! That was too close! I almost didn't get away with the emerald! Getting that last one is going to be more difficult than I thought!"  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared.  
  
"To get the emerald, make Shadow come to you."  
  
Eggman looked at Omochao. "(I thought he said he wasn't going to help me anymore? Oh well)." He thought for a moment. After a few moments, he remembered the people Shadow were with.  
  
"That's it! That's how I'll make him come to me!" Eggman also realized something else. "Hey! Aren't you supposed to be somewhere else? After all, Shadow also used you as a tool."  
  
"Strange, isn't it?"  
  
The scientist decided that it was best not to think about it, and catapulted Omochao out of his base. Then he thought of a way to put his plan to action. After that, he went to sleep.  
  
  
  
End of chapter 8  
  
  
  
Well, that's for this chapter. Once again, sorry for taking so long to update.  
  
To Sage of Darkness: Yeah, it "does" seem strange, what with Omochao being able to be everywhere at once, even having more than one of it. Now "that's" strange.  
  
To HyperShadow100: Tails was desperate enough to ask Omochao for help, since no one else was around.  
  
To Aumari Cat: Tails technically wasn't tagging along in Sonic and Amy's dates. Everyone was present, so it didn't really count as a date. Now "this" date will be just the two of them...well, to Sonic and Amy's knowledge anyways.  
  
Thank you all for reading and reviewing. ^_^ 


	9. ch9

Disclaimer: Look for it in chapter 1.  
  
  
  
Well, not much to say, except, on with the story!  
  
  
  
Sonic Tales  
  
Chapter 9  
  
[Afternoon: Angel Island]  
  
  
  
Knuckles was basically doing what he usually did, and that was guard the master emerald. He sighed in relaxation as he watched the clouds. His thoughts were interrupted, however, by a blue blur heading his direction. He assumed it was Sonic, until he noticed that it wasn't slowing down. Knuckles quickly got up to confront it, but it still wasn't stopping. So he used his thunder arrow attack on it, which caused it to stop, and use a barrier to block it. That's when Knuckles saw what it was.  
  
"Mecha Sonic?!"  
  
Mecha Sonic nodded.  
  
"I take it Eggman sent you!"  
  
It nodded.  
  
"Is nodding all you can do?"  
  
It pulled out a laser and fired, and Knuckles swiftly dodged it.  
  
"That was a cheap shot! Thunder Arrow!"  
  
It just used the barrier to block it again. So Knuckles decided to hit it dead on, which happened to be a costly mistake. As soon as he was about to hit it, the barrier activated again, knocking the echidna backwards as it counterattacked with a left and right hook. Without waiting for Knuckles to land, it turned towards the master emerald. Then it ran next to it, and picked it up. However, just as it was about to leave, Knuckles regained his balance, and flew at Mecha Sonic, knocking the master emerald out of its claws.  
  
"You're gonna need more than that to take 'my' emerald!"  
  
With lightning fast speed, it flew up to Knuckles, charging him head on. Knuckles quickly dodged as he prepared for a counterattack. However, it was too fast, and was swooping at him in random directions, like what an eagle would do if it was attacking something. The only problem was that every time Knuckles dodged, he would get scratched by its metal quill. Within seconds, he felt very woozy. He wasn't able to dodge the next attack, and fell to the ground.  
  
"What...happened?" were the echidnas last words before passing out.  
  
Mecha Sonic landed right next to him, and picked up the master emerald. It took one more glance at the echidna, and flew away. As it was flying, some sort of projectile blast hit it, causing it to drop the master emerald yet again. Then, a blurry white figure picked up the emerald. It was Rouge.  
  
"How dare you! Stealing the master emerald is 'my' job!" This made her realize something. "Hey! I have my memory back! I remember everything now!"  
  
She didn't have a long time to cheer, as Mecha Sonic shot Rouge with a laser. However, she used the master emerald as a shield, and caused a large piece of it to break off.  
  
"Heh-heh...oops?"  
  
Now angered, Mecha Sonic swooped down towards her at lightning speed. She prepared for an attack, but it just grabbed the master emerald, and flew away. She was about to go after it, but saw Knuckles lying on the ground, and decided to tend to him instead.  
  
  
  
[Angel Island: A little while later]  
  
  
  
After his wounds here tended to, Rouge waited for Knuckles to wake up. When he did, the first thing he saw was Rouge.  
  
"Huh? What are you doing here? And what happened to me?"  
  
"That machine injected some kind of poison in you. Don't worry about it though. I already gave you the antidote."  
  
"Thanks, Rouge. I owe you one."  
  
"Think nothing of it. It was the least I could do." After a few seconds of silence, she spoke again. "Um, Knuckles? I have some good and bad news for you."  
  
"And that is?"  
  
"Well, the 'good' news is that I gained my memory back."  
  
"Really? That's great! How do you feel?"  
  
"Okay, I guess."  
  
"So I suppose the 'bad' news is that you stole the master emerald, right?"  
  
"Well, no. Mecha Sonic did that."  
  
Knuckles quickly got up. "Then we have to get it back!" Then he fell back down again.  
  
"Be careful. You still need time to recover."  
  
Knuckles got back up again, only this time, Rouge forced him back down.  
  
"Stay! That poison was meant to kill you! Please, rest!"  
  
"But..the master emerald. It can't stay in Eggmans hands."  
  
"Don't worry. It's not like he's going to use it anytime soon. Besides, he's still missing a piece of it." She then showed him the large chunk that was shot off.  
  
Knuckles smiled. "Heh. I'm impressed. At least I can rest for a while. I'll need it when Eggman tries to get that last piece back."  
  
"Yeah, we need to hide it, but where?"  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared.  
  
"To hide the emerald, put it in a place that's white and green."  
  
Rouge looked at it funny. "What's that supposed to mean?"  
  
"A place that's green and white at the same time."  
  
The two thought about this for some time. After a while, Rouge understood.  
  
"I got it! We'll hide it in the White Jungle! Thanks, Omochao!" However, Omochao wasn't there anymore. "I wonder where he went?" Then she just shrugged. "Oh well. Listen, Knuckles. I'm going to go hide this. That is, I 'want' to, but then there wouldn't be anyone to care for you while I'm gone."  
  
Just then, Omochao appeared again.  
  
"I'll take care of him."  
  
Rouge nearly jumped out of her skin. "Don't do that!"  
  
"Why?! Why Omochao?!" Knuckles whined. "I'm in better care with Eggman!"  
  
"Now don't be silly." Comforted Rouge. "I won't be gone that long, and besides, I'm pretty sure Omochao can handle small chores." Then she flew away.  
  
"I'll put more peroxide on your wounds."  
  
Knuckles just groaned, hoping for Rouge to come back soon.  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: Eggmans 'secret' base]  
  
  
  
Mecha Sonic finally arrived, and then entered the base. Dr. Eggman met up with it, and it handed him the master emerald.  
  
"Excellent! You have done well. All I now need is the last remaining chaos emerald. My plan is finally going to succeed!" Then he laughed some more, but stopped when he noticed the missing chunk in the emerald. "What?! You idiot! It's missing a piece! The machine won't operate unless 'all' of the master emerald is inserted!"  
  
It didn't say anything. It just stood there.  
  
"Well, no matter. I'll just have to back there myself later. Right now, I have a little pickup you need to make." He gave Mecha Sonic a map with two photos attached to it. "I want you to go to these coordinates, abduct these two people, and bring them back here. You understand your mission?"  
  
It nodded.  
  
"Good. Now go!"  
  
It nodded again, and then left. Eggman turned back his attention to the master emerald.  
  
"And as for the rest of 'you', I'll be making a personal arrival!" Then he paused for a second. "Tomorrow, that is. I'm hungry right now. Besides, I need to be here when Mecha Sonic returns triumphantly. This will be the day Sonic is destroyed, and I 'rule' the world!" Then he laughed some more, put the master emerald in a safe place, got something to eat, and finally, continued to work on his machines.  
  
  
  
[Meanwhile: White Jungle]  
  
  
  
Rouge was flying around, trying to find the best place to hide the piece of the master emerald. She wasn't worried about losing it, just as long as nobody else could find it either. She looked at the emerald, and was thinking.  
  
"(Hmm. If I were to keep this, I could just get the rest of the emerald pieces)." Then she stopped those thoughts. "(No! What am I thinking?! I better find a hiding place for this thing right away)!"  
  
After a long time of flying and searching, she finally found a perfect spot to hide it. She landed to where there were a lot of trees, grass, water, and piles of dirt. She picked the most inconspicuous place, and buried the emerald piece there. Afterwards, she covered it, made it look more like one of the other dirt piles, and flew away.  
  
"(That wasn't too bad. I don't think even Eggman would be able to find where I hid it)." Then she sighed in relief. "(Not keeping that thing for myself was hard, but I won in the end. Knuckles should be glad to hear that)."  
  
  
  
[Angel Island]  
  
  
  
She flew back to Angel Island, and landed. When she came back, she saw Omochao just staring at Knuckles, while Knuckles was covered in bandages, muttering something incoherent.  
  
"What happened here?"  
  
"Omochao tried to 'help' with the bandages, and 'now' look at me!"  
  
Rouged laughed a little. "You look like a red mummy to me!"  
  
Knuckles rolled his eyes. "Well, now that 'you're' here, Omochao can get 'out' of here!"  
  
Omochao flew next to the exit. "That's alright. I have to get ready to help Sonic and Amy with their date tonight. Bye-bye!" Then it flew off.  
  
Rouge raised an eyebrow. "I don't think Sonic and Amy will be too thrilled with Omochao being around them. Should we do something?"  
  
"And have Omochao bother us? Hah! Let them handle their own problems."  
  
After a moment of silence, Rouge finally spoke.  
  
"Um, Knuckles?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I, um, wanted to tell you, that, when I was hiding the emerald piece, I had some temptations to steal it."  
  
"Nothing new in that."  
  
"Well, yes. But, the new thing is that I actually overcame it."  
  
"Really? Just like that?"  
  
"Just like that."  
  
"No tricks?"  
  
"No tricks."  
  
"....Look me in the eyes."  
  
So she did.  
  
"Now, tell me that you really mean what you said. That you really want to change."  
  
So she did, with utmost sincerity.  
  
"Thank you. It makes me happy that I can trust you."  
  
After some more awkward silence, Omochao reappeared.  
  
"Just kiss her! Or the other way around!" Then it flew away, leaving the two beet red.  
  
  
  
[Station square restaurant: Evening]  
  
  
  
Sonic had just picked up Amy for their date. They had decided to go to a semi fancy restaurant. Amy had decided to wear the magenta and white outfit, in which case, surprised Sonic when he first saw her.  
  
"Thanks again for this, Sonic." Amy said, remembering what Rouge said about acting as ladylike as possible. "I hope we have a great time."  
  
"Yeah, me too." Said Sonic somewhat nervously. He was expecting Amy to crush him at any moment, and was surprised that she didn't do that the minute she saw him. "So, this must be the place. Let's go in."  
  
"Yes, lets."  
  
So they entered the restaurant. However, unknowing to the both of them, Tails was following them, staying out of sight, holding a video camera.  
  
"(This is going to be fun to tease Sonic with later)!" He said to himself. "(And with everyone being busy, Sonic being too preoccupied, and Amy being too blissful, chances are that nobody will even notice me)!"  
  
At this moment, Omochao entered the restaurant.  
  
"(Stupid robot! It's going to ruin the date)!" Then he shrugged. "(Oh well. That just means more videotape material)." Then he entered the back way entrance of the restaurant, found where Amy and Sonic were sitting, and recorded while hiding inside a plant.  
  
Meanwhile, Sonic and Amy were discussing what they were doing this afternoon before the date. During those awkward moments of silence, or when the other person was talking, they would think about the other person. Here's what Sonic was thinking.  
  
"(Wow! When she's not crushing my bones with her tight grips, she's actually not that bad to talk to. Now that I get a better look at her, she's actually very pretty. Still, this is Amy we're talking about, so I wonder how long she'll be able to restrain herself)."  
  
This is what Amy was thinking about.  
  
"(Wow! Sonic is actually talking to me! He's actually not trying to avoid me! This makes me so happy! I need to keep this going as long as possible. I can't screw it up! No matter how much I'm tempted to hug him, I must restrain myself! Anyways, I wonder if he noticed the new outfit I wore? Does he like it, or was he just being nice? Then again, this is the first time he's 'ever' looked at me directly. I wonder what he's thinking about right now)?"  
  
While they were talking, Omochao appeared.  
  
"May I take your order?"  
  
"Omochao?!" Exclaimed Sonic. "What are you doing here?!"  
  
"(Oh no)!" thought Amy. "(Please don't ruin this for me! Please)?!"  
  
"No problem." Answered Omochao. "Anyways, the manager said that I could be your waiter, so I'm 'waiting' for your order."  
  
Sonic groaned at the pun. "Fine. What do you want to have, Amy?"  
  
Amy thought about it for a moment, and then responded. "I'll have the Caesar salad. What about you, Sonic?"  
  
Sonic looked through the menu. "Doesn't this place have any chili dogs?"  
  
"I wouldn't recommend it." Answered Omochao.  
  
"Why's that?"  
  
"Because rats were swimming in the chili."  
  
This caused someone who was a table away from them to pass out in disgust, since he was eating a chili dog at the moment.  
  
"Just kidding. But seriously, it'll be too messy."  
  
"Then what do you suggest?"  
  
"The lobster."  
  
Sonic looked at the menu. "But that's too expensive!"  
  
"It's on the house."  
  
Sonic shrugged, and then ordered it.  
  
Later, they ate their meals, and left. Also, Omochao was kicked out for saying that the lobster was free, and Tails got kicked out when Omochao said that the plants were alive.  
  
After a leisurely walk, Sonic and Amy went to Twinkle Park. They rode the rides, played the games, and ate some of the snacks. What surprised Sonic the most was that he was actually having a good time. Tails, of course, was following them from a distance, still filming. He was a little angry at Omochao for giving away his location, but at least Sonic and Amy didn't know that he was following them.  
  
Later that evening, they went to the park area of Twinkle Park, and sat down on a bench to look at the stars.  
  
"They sure are beautiful, aren't they?" Amy asked.  
  
"Yeah, but not as beautiful as y-!" he quickly realized what he was saying, and stopped himself. Unfortunately, Amy already heard it, and her eyes were beaming.  
  
"R-really? You really mean that?"  
  
"Um...er....uh..." Then he put his head down in embarrassment. "Yes."  
  
This made Amy very happy. She fought every urge to hug him, and instead, gently placed her hand on his. This of course, surprised Sonic, since he was worried about being pounced and/or crushed by one of Amy's bear hugs. He relaxed a bit, but accidentally let out a slight blush.  
  
"I'm very happy to hear that." She said. "As you've already known, I've felt the same way about you. I'm sorry for all those times I made you feel uncomfortable."  
  
"Um, sure." He said nervously. "To tell you the truth, I'm actually a little nervous. Not the usual nervous that I am whenever you were chasing me, but, a different kind of nervous. A type of nervous that I've never felt before."  
  
"Is that a good thing?"  
  
"It must be. I'm still here."  
  
A tear ran down Amy's cheek. She was so happy that this day finally came. The day when Sonic would show the same feelings that she showed him. Well, not completely. She showed him a bit "too" much feeling.  
  
Sonic noticed the tears. "Amy? What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing. It's just that I've always wanted this day to come, and almost lost hope on it ever coming true."  
  
Sonic gently placed his hand in hers. He blushed a little more when he realized what he just did. Amy blushed a little too.  
  
"Well, Amy, maybe we can see how this works out. Not that I'm enthusiastic about it or anything."  
  
Amy smiled, and nodded in agreement. She knew that Sonic always tried to act like nothing mattered to him, but couldn't ever completely hide it from her.  
  
The two just gazed into each others eyes for what seemed like minutes. Then, their faces moved closer...closer..and closer. Suddenly, Omochao appeared.  
  
"To reach first base, please continue."  
  
The two quickly backed away from each other.  
  
"Omochao!" Exclaimed Amy. "You ruined a perfectly good moment!"  
  
"The trees are watching us. The leaves have orange fur."  
  
"Omochao." Said Sonic. "What the hell are you talking about?"  
  
Then, it hit him.  
  
"Tails! Get out of those trees!"  
  
So he did. "Stupid Omochao! Thanks for keeping my secret!"  
  
"You're welcome."  
  
Then Sonic took the video camera, took out the tape, gave the recorder back to Tails, and destroyed the tape.  
  
"Aw man!"  
  
"Well, Amy. I had fun, but it looks like I need to take 'somebody' home."  
  
"We can use my car." Suggested Amy. "After all, this date could end with 'me' taking you home."  
  
Sonic just shrugged, and accepted the invitation. The group, excluding Omochao, got in the car, and went home.  
  
  
  
[Late at night: Shadow's apartment]  
  
  
  
Shadow was in his apartment, sleeping. He was awoken a bad dream he had. He turned on the lights, only to see Omochao flying above him.  
  
"Omochao! What are you doing here?!"  
  
"Watching you sleep. I don't have anything else to do. Sonic and Amy ended their date already."  
  
"Oh. Well, how did it go? Did Sonic run away?"  
  
"Nope. In fact, he had a good time."  
  
Shadow was surprised. "Now this is strange. I'll have to tease him about it later."  
  
"To go to sleep, share your dream."  
  
"Ha! Like I'd 'ever' tell 'you' my dream!"  
  
"You were dreaming about your Maria friends being kidnapped."  
  
"What?! How did you--!"  
  
"Bye-bye!" And then Omochao flew off.  
  
"Oh never mind." Said Shadow sleepily. "I'm 'way' too sleepy to figure out his riddles. I'll solve it in the morning." And then he went to sleep.  
  
  
  
[Beach]  
  
  
  
Big was at the pier, still fishing for his Froggy.  
  
"Duh, Froggy? Please come back!"  
  
  
  
End of chapter 9.  
  
To Jade Stellar: I agree. I read about those chaos' in a magazine. I sure wish I knew about that sooner!  
  
To HyperShadow100: *shrugs* I'm not quite sure. He just seems to be everywhere and nowhere. Go figure Omochao's.  
  
Well, that's it for "this" chapter. Thanks for reading!^_^ 


	10. ch10

Disclaimer: Check for it in chapter 1.  
  
Sorry for taking so long to update. I had major writers block on how I should end this. I hope it was worth it. Enjoy!^_^  
  
Oh, and please excuse the spacing in between scene changes. That is ff.net's doing (always screwing up).  
Sonic Tales  
  
Chapter 10  
  
(Angel Island)  
It was the afternoon, and Knuckles was waiting for Eggman to show up, while Rouge was gone. She had gone to the White jungle, just in case Eggman somehow found the piece of the master emerald. However, no signs of showing up have been introduced.  
  
"That's strange." Knuckles said to himself. "I figured he would've at least sent some robots here. I wonder what he's planning."  
(Eggmans 'secret' base)  
The reason why Eggman hadn't shown up to Angel island yet, was because Mecha Sonic had not yet shown up with the hostages.  
  
"What could be taking him so long?!" Eggman said irritably. "I'm 'way' behind schedule!"  
  
So he went to his supercomputer, and tried to pinpoint mecha Sonic's coordinates. After a minute or so, he found it. Strangely, it wasn't even moving. So he zoomed the coordinates in closer so that he could get a picture. When the picture became clear, there was mecha Sonic, shut off in the middle of the beach.  
  
"What?! What happened here?!"  
  
That was when Omochao appeared.  
  
"Did you know that mecha Sonic is no longer functioning?"  
  
Eggman turned around. "Oh, it's you. Go away!"  
  
"Did you know that mecha Sonic is clogged up with sand?"  
  
"Why was he even at the beach?!"  
  
Omochao just shrugged.  
  
"Never mind! I'll find out myself!" Then he boarded his Eggflyer, and flew to the beach.  
(The Beach)  
After quite some time, Eggman finally reached the beach, and approached mecha Sonic. He unclogged the sand, and restarted his system. When it was functional, Eggman spoke.  
  
"So, what were you doing here?! You were supposed to be getting those hostages!"  
  
It nodded, and then pointed to the already tied up Maria's.  
  
"Well, then why didn't you return?!"  
  
Then Omochao appeared.  
  
"They put up a struggle, and then some kids threw sand at him, and then ran off."  
  
"Oh....Wait a minute! I thought you said you didn't know?!"  
  
"I didn't. I just found that out right now."  
  
Ignoring Omochao, he just walked up to the hostages.  
  
"Oh well. At least I know have the bait."  
  
All of a sudden, they were gone. He quickly turned around, and there was Shadow, standing on the remains of a sandcastle.  
  
"Shadow! What are you doing here?!"  
  
Shadow grinned. "Well, some kids told me that a robot was attacking people at the beach." Then he frowned. "I just wish that they weren't so slow in getting to the point!"  
  
Eggman sneered at Shadow. "You may think that you won, but I will have the last laugh!" He pulled out a remote, and pushed it. "See if you can handle this!"  
  
All of a sudden, mecha Sonics eyes lit up to a bright red. A few sparks flickered, and then turned towards Shadow.  
  
"Mecha Sonic! Attack!" then he said to Shadow; "He's been modified since last time Sonic battled him. I'll use 'you' as his first target!"  
  
It wasted no time in attacking. It rushed over at Shadow, who dodged out of the way. He attacked it, but it used its barrier to block the attack. Then it counterattacked with lightning speed, hitting Shadow many times. He broke the chain combo by using chaos control, teleporting directly behind Eggman. Eggman noticed this, and tried to get out of the way, but mecha Sonic was too quick, and hit Eggman (Eggflyer included) into the sky. Shadow dodged just in time. However, the victory was short lived by mecha Sonics quick pummel attack.  
  
"Damn! What do I do now?"  
  
That was when Omochao spoke.  
  
"To take damage to mecha Sonic, look to the beach for support." Then it flew away.  
  
Frustrated, Shadow continued to dodge, getting hit most of the time in the process. Finally, Shadow retreated until he could think of something better. However, mecha Sonic stood in front of him every time. After using chaos control to dodge over and over again, he accidentally kicked some sand in the air. It hit mecha Sonic, causing it to sputter. That was when Shadow realized his weakness.  
  
So he continued to throw piles of sand at it until it was completely covered with it. After some time of doing this, he used the chaos spear to finish it, destroying it in the process. However, just as he was about to put the chaos emerald back in his pocket, a small robotic bug shot out of the remains of mecha Sonic, and grabbed the emerald. Then it quickly flew away as fast as possible.  
  
The first thing he did was go and see if the Maria's were alright.  
  
"Are you okay? Were you hurt?"  
  
"No, we're alright." Said Sr. Maria. "Just go and stop Eggman before it's too late."  
  
"Yeah!" said lil Maria. "Win one for us!"  
  
Shadow nodded, and went in pursuit of the bug.  
(Meanwhile: Sonic and Tails' home)  
It was a quiet day here. Sonic and Amy were playing checkers, and Tails was still fixing his machines. After a short time, he finally fixed his main computer.  
  
"I did it! I did it!" Tails exclaimed excitedly while jumping for joy. "My computer is finally fixed!"  
  
Sonic and Amy went over to congratulate him.  
  
"Great job, Tails." Said Sonic.  
  
"Yeah, way to go!" said Amy.  
  
Tails sat down on the chair, and turned the computer on. "Now we can see what Eggman was trying to keep from us."  
  
After some time of searching, he finally hacked into Eggmans master computer. After reading the layout of the plans, he translated their meaning to Sonic and Amy. Amy wanted to go with Sonic, but he insisted that she stay there, and keep out of trouble.  
  
So, boarding the Tornado, they flew towards Eggmans 'secret' base, which everybody should know by now, isn't very secret.  
(Meanwhile: Angel Island)  
Eggmans Eggflyer finally landed at Angel Island, where an impatient Echidna was waiting for battle.  
  
"About time you showed up." Said Knuckles. "So, you gonna make this easy on yourself?"  
  
Eggman looked at the echidna. "This should be simple. After all, it's only you."  
  
Suddenly, a loud beeping could be heard. "Hold on a second." Said Eggman as he brought out his beacon. He looked at it to see what was happening. Unfortunately for him, it was a warning that someone has infiltrated his base.  
  
"What?! How could this be?!" Then he turned to Knuckles. "I'm afraid I'll have to postpone our battle. I'm needed elsewhere." The he set the Eggflyer to auto repair, and then boarded it. Finally, he took off as fast as he could.  
  
"You're not getting away that easily!" shouted Knuckles as he took flight.  
  
Eggman noticed that he was being followed, so he put on visors, and then shot out a blinding light in every direction, temporarily blinding the echidna. When his vision returned, the Eggflyer was gone.  
  
"Well, at least he didn't get the emerald piece." Then he thought about the situation. "Hmm. This might be what he wants me to think. I better take precautions." So he flew to the White jungle to see if Rouge and the emerald piece were still there.  
(Meanwhile: Eggmans 'secret' base)  
After much chasing, Shadow finally chased the robotic bug to Eggmans 'secret' base. He looked around for a quieter way inside. After a few seconds of thinking, he decided to just burst in through the front entrance, dodging all of the traps and obstacles.  
  
Some time later, Sonic and Tails reached the base. Sonic noticed that the front entrance was already demolished, and the obstacles were already cleared. Still a bit confused, they entered anyways. When they were inside, they saw Shadow completely annihilating a small robotic bug. They then approached him.  
  
"What's with you?" asked Sonic. "This bug bite you or something?"  
  
"For your information." started Shadow, but then realized that Sonic and Tails were here. "What are 'you' doing here? Shouldn't you be on a date with Amy or something?"  
  
"Watch it, Shadow." Warned Sonic. "Besides, Tails got his computer running again, and hacked into Eggmans supercomputer. He read what his evil scheme was about, so that brings us here. Simply to stop him."  
  
"Why are 'you' here?" asked Tails. "I was kind of wondering that."  
  
So Shadow told his story about all that had happened. Sonic and Tails completely understood it, and then Tails told Shadow of the plan that Eggman was devising. However, just before they started to retrieve the chaos emeralds, Eggman burst through the door with his Eggwalker.  
  
"Stop right there!" Then he noticed the intruders. "No! Sonic, Tails, 'and' Shadow?! You can't be here! You'll ruin everything!"  
  
"That's exactly the point, Eggbutt!" said Sonic.  
  
"When I'm done with you, you'll be eating out of a straw!" exclaimed Shadow.  
  
Eggman growled. "Don't think you're getting out of here so easily!" Then he pressed a red button by a wall. It activated every robot in the base, all of which were programmed to destroy intruders. "Destroy them!"  
  
Sonic whispered to Tails. "Tails. You go get the chaos emeralds and the master emerald. Then, give them to us, and escape with the master emerald. Shadow and I will try to buy you some time. Got it?"  
  
"Loud and clear." Tails whispered back.  
  
So while Tails was sneaking off, Sonic and Shadow were destroying robots left and right, while Eggman kept sending in bigger and stronger ones faster than they could destroy them. This, of course, was wearing out the two hedgehogs. That was when Omochao appeared.  
  
"To replenish energy, always carry at least one ring."  
  
"But we lost our rings!" shouted Sonic. "We need some clear time in order to find some more!"  
  
Omochao shrugged. "Then I guess you're screwed." Then it flew out of reach.  
  
The two hedgehogs didn't have enough time to throttle the little robot, as they were already preoccupied with more and more 'other' robots.  
(Meanwhile: In some other area of the base)  
After some time of searching, Tails finally found the room where Eggman had hid the master emerald, along with the location of the other chaos emeralds. He took the master emerald and placed it inside the Tornado. Then he grabbed each of the chaos emeralds, put them in a bag, and loaded it into the Tornado. Finally, he got in himself, and then rushed back to Sonic and Shadow as fast as he could, clearing some obstacles in the process.  
(Meanwhile: White Jungle)  
Knuckles and Rouge were searching around for the piece of the master emerald. For some strange reason, it kept moving on the radar.  
  
"How did this happen?" asked Knuckles.  
  
"I'm not sure." Answered Rouge. "One moment, I was finding something to eat, and the next moment, my radar went off."  
  
So, after some time of searching, they finally found what the cause of the emerald pieces' movement was. Right next to the lake, they saw something that they would've never expected to see.  
  
"Big?!" they both exclaimed.  
  
Yes, it was Big. Apparently, he was using the emerald piece as bait to lure his once again missing Froggy towards him. The two quickly rushed next to him.  
  
"Give me the piece of the master emerald!" Knuckles demanded.  
  
Big just gave a vacant stare. After a moment of pause, he finally spoke.  
  
"Uh....what that?"  
  
"Oh never mind! I'll get it myself!" exclaimed Knuckles. He looked at the lake, and then at the fishing pole. Finally, he jumped in the water to swim after it. Unfortunately, it was filled with piranhas, and the echidna quickly flew out of the water.  
  
That was when Omochao appeared.  
  
"Be careful of the fish that live in the water."  
  
Knuckles turned towards Omochao. "You could've told me that sooner!"  
  
"Did you know that Big's Froggy isn't in that lake?"  
  
"Obviously."  
  
After several seconds of discussion, Big heard what Omochao said, and dropped the fishing pole into the lake.  
  
"Duh....Me need find Froggy somewhere other!" Then he ran off.  
  
Looking down over the water, Knuckles and Rouge thought about how to get that emerald piece back.  
  
"So, any suggestions?" asked Rouge.  
  
"I have one." Answered Omochao. "If you wait long enough, he will come."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Patience is a virtue."  
  
"You're not making any sense!"  
  
"Wait and see." Then it flew off.  
  
"Some help 'you' were!"  
  
So the two of them continued to ponder the situation. Just 'how' were they going to get that piece of the master emerald back?  
(Meanwhile: Back at Eggmans 'secet' base)  
Both hedgehogs were getting really tired. Eggman was now laughing maniacally as they were getting hit more and more by his robots. A minute later, Tails flew above them.  
  
"I have just what you need." He said as he untied the bag he was holding. "Here, catch." Then he dropped the chaos emeralds above Sonic and Shadow, who eagerly caught them. "Good luck! I'm giving this back to Knuckles." Then he flew off in the Tornado.  
  
"Oh no you don't!" shouted Eggman as he boarded his Eggflyer. "Come back here!" Then he flew in pursuit of the fox.  
  
Meanwhile, Sonic and Shadow used the chaos emeralds to become Super Sonic and Hyper Shadow!  
  
"Shadow! Go get us some rings!" said Sonic. "I'll divert them for a while."  
  
So he did. Within seconds, he had enough rings for both of them. They used their new found strength to pound every robot in the vicinity to scrap metal. Then they collect some more rings for the road. Finally, and just for the fun of it, they destroyed Eggmans entire base. When they were finished, they flew off in pursuit of him.  
(Meanwhile: White Jungle)  
Using the radar on the Tornado, Tails found the location of the emerald piece. He wondered why the emerald looked a little different, but now it was all clear. He landed next to Rouge and Knuckles, who were still thinking of a safe way to get the emerald piece.  
  
"I'll get it!" said Tails eagerly. He pushed a button, and a bubble top appeared on the Tornado. Then he walked it inside of the lake. Within seconds, he emerged with the last piece which he quickly gave it to Knuckles, who easily reassembled it.  
  
"Thanks, Tails." Said Knuckles. "It's great to have my master emerald back!"  
  
"I'll bet it is." Said Rouge. "It's quite strange how Omochao was right about waiting."  
  
"Omochao?" Tails asked. "He was here?"  
  
Before they could answer him, however, Eggman flew into the scene. He fired many weapons at them, in which they dodged swiftly. Tails counterattacked by firing all that he had on the mad scientist. While firing, Eggman pushed a few more buttons.  
  
"Don't think I haven't come prepared, fox boy!" said Eggman. "Look over the horizon!"  
  
Knuckles looked over at the mountain, which began to look less and less like a mountain, and more and more like a machine. That's right. The whole mountain was a giant robot!  
  
"We'll try to hold it off." Said Knuckles. "Tails, you keep Eggman busy."  
  
"You got it!" answered Tails.  
  
Both Knuckles and Rouge, now hand in hand, flew at the robot, flying circles around its head, which was kind of hard to do, given its size. They used their special attacks on it, but to no avail. Suddenly, Omochao appeared.  
  
"You should know Eggman by now. Search this robots body for a special weakness."  
  
Knowing that what Omochao said just now had a ring of logic, they flew around, looking for a vulnerable area, shooting everywhere. Finally, the robot decided to fire back. It forehead opened up, revealing a red light, along with a rail cannon. They quickly took a hit at it, causing it to stagger, but not stopping its charge. In three seconds, it fired, barely missing its target. Both Knuckles and Rouge quickly backed away from it.  
  
"At the rate 'we're' going, it'll have destroyed this entire jungle before we even destroy it!" said Knuckles irritably.  
  
"You think we should wait? You know, like before?" asked Rouge.  
  
"I highly doubt two coincidences will occur on the same hour."  
  
Then, as if to prove him wrong, Super Sonic and Hyper Shadow entered the scene.  
  
"You were saying?" said Rouge.  
  
The first thing that the two powered up hedgehogs did, was trash Eggmans Eggwalker.  
  
"Sonic! Shadow!" exclaimed Tails. "It's great to see you guys!"  
  
"No time for small talk." Said Shadow. "We have a giant robot to destroy first!"  
  
"You can say that again!" said Sonic as he saw the size of it. "I wonder what makes it tick."  
  
Omochao appeared next to them.  
  
"To defeat the boss, wait for it to fire before hitting it."  
  
"He's right...in a way." Said Knuckles. "Whenever it opens its forehead to fire out a blast, it reveals.." That was all the echidna could say before everyone was distracted by something charging.  
  
By instinct, they all scattered as it fired aimlessly, not caring what it hit. Sonic and Shadow noticed the glowing red light.  
  
Sonic grinned. "Same ol' predictable Eggman."  
  
So the two of them charged at the robot. They continued to attack it until it opened up for another attack. Sonic quickly destroyed the rail cannon while Shadow gave the red light a full frontal assault. Without its rail cannon, it was pretty much helpless. So, after the next time it tried to open its forehead for another attack, it was destroyed easily by a two pronged attack by the two powered up hedgehogs.  
  
When it was completely destroyed, the two reverted back to their normal selves, and joined the group again.  
  
"So, where's Eggman?" asked Sonic.  
  
Tails sighed. "Unfortunately, he got away, again."  
  
"Oh well. At least we showed him that he can't ever win against two cool hedgehogs."  
  
"I'll second that." Said Shadow. "After all, it 'is' the truth."  
  
"So, what do we do now?" asked Tails.  
  
"I'll go take the chaos emeralds to a place where they can't be found." Answered Shadow.  
  
"We'll all help." Said Tails.  
  
"Not me." Said Knuckles. "I'm going back to Angel Island to return the master emerald to its rightful place."  
  
"And I'll come with you." Said Rouge.  
  
So, everyone did what was needed to be done.  
(Twinkle Park: The next day)  
After that whole fiasco, everyone decided that it would be a great idea to have some fun at Twinkle Park, even Knuckles and Rouge.  
  
Sonic made a quick visit to chao world to pick up his present to Amy, which, once she saw, was ecstatic. She hugged him tightly, but only for a second, and then let go, much to Sonics relief. Not that he still hated it; it's just that he liked breathing better.  
  
Shadow, Tails, and the two Maria's were also having fun. They rode rides, played games, and watched Shadow break his own record in "Nights Pinball."  
  
Big finally found his Froggy, and with the advice of Omochao, put Froggy on a leash. So Big spent the day playing with his Froggy, while Omochao spent the day "helping" people.  
  
So, all in all, everyone was having fun. Well, everybody except for one person.  
(Eggmans "New" secret base)  
Eggman was constructing his new base. One that will be much stronger than the last one. Fortunately, such a base will take a long time to build, so, in the meantime, he won't be bothering anybody for quite a while.  
(Twinkle Park: Evening)  
After everyone had fun, they went home. Sonic escorted Amy home, and then raced Tails home. Knuckles went back to guard the master emerald, but not without escorting Rouge back home first. Big somehow lost his Froggy again, and is currently searching for it, again. And Omochao, well, let's just say that he's still "helping" people.  
THE END  
Well, that's it for this story. Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing it!^_^ So, tell me what you thought of the story as a whole. You can either review, and/or you can send an e-mail. Once again, it is rubynall@hotmail.com  
  
Well, that's it. I'll now be working on another story (although I'm not sure what of). Oh well, I'm sure I'll think of something. 


End file.
